‘Mahakal Lok’: Jyotiraditya Scindia, MP ministers, collectors, state depts change profile pic on Twitter

PTI, Oct 8, 2022, 8:22 PM IST

Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, many Madhya Pradesh ministers, district collectors and various state departments have changed their profile photographs on Twitter to a common thematic picture ahead of the opening of the grand ‘Mahakal Lok’ on October 11.

While Scindia, a scion of the erstwhile royal family of Gwalior, which has an intricate link with Ujjain has changed his display picture, others have also changed the cover photograph of their Twitter accounts. Some top officials here have changed their display photos on WhatsApp too. This trend comes after Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan appealed to people on Twitter to do so to offer ”our venerable worship” to the residing deity of the ancient Mahakaleshwar temple, days before the new corridor to the ‘Mahakal Maharaj’ is dedicated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Chouhan on Thursday afternoon had changed the display picture and cover photo on his official Twitter handle to two digital posters bearing the name ‘Shri Mahakal Lok Ujjain’, and images of Mahakaleshwar Temple and the holy Jyotirlinga respectively. The Mahakaleshwar Temple is one of the 12 ‘jyotirlings’ in the country and gets devotees throughout the year. ”The auspicious occasion has come, on October 11, our Prime Minister @narendramodi ji will dedicate ‘Shri Mahakal Lok’ to revered Shri Mahakal Maharaj. Come, be a part of this festival and offer our venerable worship to Shri Mahakaleshwar through the DP and banner of one’s social media profile. ‘Jai Shri Mahakaal’,” he tweeted in Hindi.

In the new display picture or profile image, a trident and a ‘damru’ has been depicted above the official name of the corridor — ‘Shri Mahakal Lok Ujjain’. The cover picture also bears the name of the mega corridor and the thematic design.

By Saturday, the official Twitter accounts of collectors of Ujjain, Indore, Mandsaur, Shajapur, Jabalpur, and Ujjain Municipal Commissioner and Ujjain Smart City Ltd, among others, could be seen sporting the new images, as both profile pictures and cover photos.

The profile picture on official WhatsApp numbers of Ujjain’s Collector and Superintendent of Police have also been changed to the common thematic one used on Twitter.

Chouhan’s cabinet colleagues Bhupendra Singh and Mohan Yadav have also changed the display images.

Bhupendra Singh, the Housing and Urban Development minister in the state government here on Thursday had said the PM is expected to land in Ujjain around 5:30 PM and will spend about 2-2.5 hours in the city before returning. He described Prime Minister Modi as an ”ardent devotee of Mahakal Maharaj.” Various state departments, including that of culture, tourism, industry policy and investment promotion, religious trusts and endowments, animal husbandry, cooperative, cottage and rural industries, public relations, and offices of PRO of Ujjain and Shajapur have also followed suit after Chouhan’s appeal.

Official Twitter handles of MP MyGov, Chief Minister, MP; Office of Shivraj, have already changed the two images.

Scindia, Union Minister for Civil Aviation in the Modi government on Saturday also tweeted a video of the ‘Mahakal Lok’ and said it will prove a major boon from the view of spiritual faith and tourism.

”In holy city Ujjain, a grand ‘Mahakal Lok’ is set to be dedicated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on October 11. Ujjain, getting added in new chapters of development, and its ‘Mahakal Lok’ will prove a major boon from the view of spiritual faith and tourism,” he tweeted in Hindi.

MP MyGov on Saturday shared some of the photographs and videos of the soon-to-open ‘Mahakal Lok’ and in one poster, informed that the first phase of the corridor project has been built at a cost of Rs 350 crore while the cost for its second phase is estimated at Rs 450 crore. It also announced a selfie with Mahakal contest on Friday on Twitter.

From actors to poets and priests to singers, the state government has shared on Twitter videos of appeals made by people from various walks of life, urging citizens to become a part of this moment.

Modi on October 11 will dedicate the first phase of the Rs 856-crore Mahakaleshwar Temple corridor development project here, around 200 km from the state capital Bhopal. The over 900-metre-long corridor, billed as one of the largest such corridors in India, is becoming popular among the youth through social media. Two gateways — Nandi Dwar and Pinaki Dwar — separated by a short distance, have been erected near the starting point of the corridor, which winds its way to the entrance of the ancient temple, offering aesthetic views along the way. The corridor is decorated with 108 ornate sandstone columns bearing trident-style design on the top and ‘mudras’ of Lord Shiva on its faces. It also has gushing fountains surrounded by artistic sculptures of Lord Shiva and other deities and over 50 murals depicting various stories taken from Shiv Puran.