5 August 2020: Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone of the grand temple at Ram Janmabhoomi in Ayodhya
8 August 2025: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and Union Home Minister Amit Shah will lay the foundation stone of a grand temple at Sita Prakatya Sthal Punaura Dham in Sitamarhi.
Islamic invaders demolished the Shri Ram Mandir and erected the Babri structure there, Bharat Mata remained enslaved, and in independent India, the matter reached courts. Hindus, thus, had to wait for five centuries to see Shri Ram Lalla in his rightful abode. While this wait of 500 long years became a constant battle for Hindus, Sita Ma’s home Mithila remained neglected for decades. Now, a grand temple is being planned in Punaura Dham in Sitamarhi, where it is believed that Sita Ma appeared from the Earth. CM Nitish Kumar and Home Minister Amit Shah will lay the foundation stone of the temple on August 8.
People are being invited with Akshat-Tulsi
At Punaura Dham reparations are going on in full swing to make the foundation stone laying ceremony of Janaki temple and corridor grand. Several big leaders including Amit Shah and Nitish Kumar, saints and common people will participate in this program. It is estimated that lakhs of people will attend this event.
A door-to-door invitation campaign is also being run for this foundation stone laying ceremony, and devotees are being invited with yellow sacred rice grains and Tulsi leaves. Along with this, passersby passing through the city are also being invited to the program.
Notably, this foundation stone laying program will be celebrated as a three-day grand festival and holy water from 11 rivers will be brought for the foundation of the divine temple of Mata Janaki. These include Ganga, Yamuna, Bhagirathi, Alaknanda, Mandakini, Pindar, Dhauliganga, Lakshmana Ganga, Saraswati, Kamla and Saryu rivers.
The temple management has also decided to organize Deepotsav at the temple on the evening of the foundation stone laying ceremony. For this, people are being appealed to come with a lamp on the day of foundation stone laying. On that day, there is a plan to decorate the temple as well as the Sitakund complex with 51,000 lamps.
Development plan of Punaura Dham
On 1st July 2025, the Bihar Cabinet approved a budget of Rs 882.87 crore for the construction of the temple at Punaura Dham. Out of this amount, Rs 137 crore will be used for the construction of the Janaki temple, Rs 728 crore will be used for the development of tourism-related infrastructure. A provision has been made to spend Rs 16.62 crore on its maintenance for 10 years.
For the development of this shrine, 50 acres of land will be acquired. The development project includes the construction of a huge temple in accordance with traditional architecture, its conservation and beautification. In addition, entrance gate, rest house, Yagyashala, Bhojanalaya, meditation center and discourse hall will also be constructed around the temple complex.
Under the development of tourism facilities, hotels, rest houses, museums, Smriti Dwar and memorial buildings will be constructed in the complex. To maintain greenery in the area around the temple, beautiful reservoirs and fountains will be installed and gardens will also be constructed. Along with this, ‘Sita-Vatika’ and ‘Lav-Kush Vatika’ will also be developed.
For the convenience of the devotees, a bus terminal will be constructed and infrastructure will also be developed for reaching the temple and for staying there. Also, modern parking spaces, wide roads and footpaths with street lights will be built. Apart from this, digital information centers and cameras will be installed in the area for security.
Janaki Janmasthan was neglected for decades, Nitish Kumar discontinues this neglect of the holy place
Much like the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi in Uttar Pradesh’s Ayodhya, the birthplace of Maa Sita has also been a victim of neglect and ignorance for years. In Ayodhya, the construction of the temple was postponed for decades on the pretext of controversy and politics. However, there was no controversy or dispute on this sacred place of Mithila, yet this holy place remained immersed in the darkness of neglect. Neither a grand temple was built nor any large-scale development work was done.
For years, not only the local people but also devotees from far-off places have been waiting for a grand temple here, but now Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has taken the responsibility of changing these circumstances. After his efforts, the grand temple of Mata Janaki is going to take shape of reality. This grand temple will not only become the centre of faith of the devotees, but will also be a symbol of religious-cultural pride of Bihar.
After the construction of Shri Ram temple in Ayodhya, the birthplace of Maa Sita has also got a new lease of life. CM Nitish Kumar says that the construction of a grand temple here will boost tourism and a large number of devotees will come here to worship Mother Janaki. Also, he says that the arrival of tourists will also create employment.
Nitish Kumar is continuously visiting Punaura Dham and reviewing the preparations. On 26th July, CM Nitish and Deputy CM Samrat Chaudhary reached Punaura Dham and apart from performing puja there, they also reviewed the preparations. Recently, Union Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai also visited this holy place.
How will the temple of Mata Janaki be?
The company which was appointed for the master planning and architectural services of the Ram temple in Ayodhya, has been appointed as the design consultant for the development of this pilgrimage site in Punaura Dham. On 22nd June, CM Nitish Kumar shared the design of the temple and other structures.
Ashish Sompura, who was the architect of Ram Mandir, is also the architect of this temple. He says that every effort will be made to ensure that the architecture of Maa Janaki’s temple is as grand as that of Ram Mandir. Special preparations have been made to ensure that this temple of Maa Janaki remains strong for centuries.
This temple will be constructed using red sandstone from Bansi Paharpur in Rajasthan due to which the entire temple will have a unique appearance. This stone strengthens the structure for centuries without breaking or getting damaged. The height of this temple will be 151 feet.
मुझे बताते हुए अत्यंत प्रसन्नता हो रही है कि जगत जननी मां जानकी की जन्मस्थली पुनौराधाम, सीतामढ़ी को समग्र रूप से विकसित किए जाने हेतु भव्य मंदिर सहित अन्य संरचनाओं का डिजाइन अब तैयार हो गया है, जिसे आपके साथ साझा किया जा रहा है। इसके लिए एक ट्रस्ट का भी गठन कर दिया गया है ताकि… pic.twitter.com/DdJfnEcjKq
— Nitish Kumar (@NitishKumar) June 22, 2025
Historical significance of Sitamarhi
As per the Hindu scriptures and beliefs, King Janak found Sita in a golden pot while plowing the land. Because she appeared from the Earth, Mother Sita is also called Bhumiputri or Bhusuta. According to mythology, after a severe famine in Maharaja Janak’s kingdom Janakpur, a sage advised him to perform a yagya and plow the barren land.
According to the official website of the district, King Janak was ploughing somewhere near Sitamarhi to persuade Lord Indra to bring rain. It is said that King Janak dug a tank at the spot where Sita appeared and installed stone idols of Rama, Sita and Lakshmana to mark the spot after the Ram-Sita wedding.
This pond is now known as Janaki Kund and is located south of the Janaki temple. According to the website, over time the place turned into a forest and about 500 years ago a Hindu ascetic named Birbal Das was divinely inspired to discover the place.
When he came from Ayodhya, he cleared the forest and found the idols installed by King Janak and built a temple there and started worshiping Mata Janaki. The existing temple at this place is believed to be about 100 years old.
