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http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/002200808271022.htm

Rourkela hosts tallest Hanuman statue in Asia

Rourkela (Orissa) (PTI): Entering Rourkela city, one cannot miss the towering statue of Lord Hanuman which measuring 74 feet and one inch is the tallest statue of a Hindu deity in Asia.

Drawing hundreds of visitors everyday, the statue, part of a temple complex 'Hanuman Vatika' overlooks the city appearing to be guarding its residents.

Hanuman Vatika is an important landmark in Rourkela and on auspicious dates apart from Saturdays and Sundays more than 10,000 people offer prayers to Hanumanji coming from Jharkhand, Bihar and even faraway Chhatisgarh, B R B Mishra, manager of the temple complex, told PTI.

Spread over an area of 12 acres it is a green oasis of serenity. Besides the impressive Hanuman statue, the vatika has nearly a dozen small shrines dedicated to different deities like Lord Shiva, Lord Jagannath, Balabhadra and Sister Subhadra, Vaishno Devi, Somenath, Ma Bata Mangala, Ma Bimala and Lord Sri Ram.

The magnificent statue was built by Togu Laxman Swamy, a reputed artist of Andhra Pradesh which took about two years to complete.

Interestingly, when the statue was unveiled by the then chief minister Biju Patnaik on February 23, 1994, he was taken atop by a crane to garland the statue.

The complex is managed by the Jai Hanuman Trust financed by devotees and businessmen of Sundargarh district. The trust looks after the day-to-day management of the vatika without charging entry fee from the visitors and devotees.

Each temple has separate priests and the complex has 'Ramayan Pathsala', a 'Yagya Shals' and a stage for bhajan and discourse.

The finance for running the trust comes mainly from donations, sale of Hanuman photographs and rent from the shopping complex.

The religious complex also provides platforms for social functions like marriage and other activities and also has a catering service of its own.