India, May 7 -- The state government will spend Rs.4,820 crore on the restoration, conservation and development of major religious sites across Maharashtra. The decision was taken at a meeting of the council of ministers in Ahilyanagar on Tuesday. The state will also set up a body to oversee the Nashik-Trimbakeshwar Kumbh Mela to be held in 2027. It will be set up on the lines of the Prayagraj Authority of the Uttar Pradesh government.

Religious sites that will get a makeover include the Shri Tuljabhavani Temple in Dharashiv, for which the state government has approved Rs.1,865 crore. Tuljabhavani was the reigning deity of the Maratha empire. The Mahalaxmi Temple in Kolhapur will be restored at a cost of Rs.1,445 crore. Mahurgad, a relig...