Land allotment for Manmohan Singh's memorial to take some time; Rashtriya Smriti Sthal, Kisan Ghat among spots considered

The land allotment for the memorial site of former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh can take some more time. This is because spaces for the construction of a memorial can only be given to trust, which is yet to be established in this case. 

The government can earmark the land for the memorial but it has to be built by a trust, Times of India reported citing officials. On December 26 night, Manmohan Singh passed away at the age of 92 in Delhi's AIIMS Hospital. 

"It will take some more days as the trust, which is yet to be established, needs to apply for the land," a source told the publication. 

Preliminary assessment of land parcels available in the Rajghat area is being carried out for Singh's memorial. Area near the Kisan Ghat, the memorial of former PM Chaudhary Charan Singh, is also among the sites being considered for Manmohan Singh's memorial. Rashtriya Smriti Sthal, the designated spot for the last rites of presidents, vice-presidents and PMs, is also being considered. 

One of the officials cited the example of Sadaiv Atal, the memorial built for former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee, to explain the delay in building Manmohan Singh's memorial. 

As per the official, even for the memorial for former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee, land was allotted to the Atal Samiti Nyas (Trust). 

The Atal Samiti Nyas (Trust) was registered over a month after the late BJP stalwart's passing. After the trust applied for the land parcel, an MoU was signed with the Central Public Works Department (CPWD). 

The School of Planning and Architecture made the design of the samadhi, following which the trust released funds for the construction to the CPWD. Spanning over 1.5 acres of land, Vajpayee's memorial has been built at the Rashtriya Smriti Sthal where he was cremated on August 17, 2018. 

A member of the Atal Samiti Nyas said: "Because of a change in policy, the land was allotted only to the trust."