Mosque in Ayodhya will have health, education centres symbolising Indian ethos, spirit of Islam: Consultant Architect

By Gaurav Arora
New Delhi [India], September 3 : Jamia Millia Islamia University Professor SM Akhtar, consultant architect for the mosque to be built in Ayodhya, said that the mosque will house health and education centres for the common people with an aim to serve mankind with Indian ethos and spirit of Islam.
"I don't know about the past but I am concerned about the future and what can be done in the future. It is not just a mosque to be built but will serve a social cause and that is why I am interested in this project. The purpose of the construction is that it builds bridges between people. There is a saying that if you serve humankind, you serve God. Every man has God inside him," Professor Akhtar told ANI.
Professor Akhtar further said that the mosque will be part of a complex which will also house health and education centres for the common people of the region and the broader objective will be to serve mankind with Indian ethos and spirit of Islam.
"There are going to be other institutions apart from a mosque in the complex related to health and education. We plan to build a healthcare centre and an educational centre there. People of Ayodhya and Faizabad have no high-end health centre. These two objectives are defined as of now. Our objectives are to serve mankind with Indian ethos and the spirit of Islam," he said.
"The spirit of Islam is embodied in the fact that it will be taken care of the fact that there will be a focus on serving humanity through education and healthcare. There will not be any name of the mosque. The society is the Indo Islamic Cultural Foundation under which it will be built," he added.
He further said that the architecture of the mosque will be based on contemporary needs and it will not be based on any past design, thereby being an original structure.
"If one talks about architecture, then it will be an original design. It will be based on contemporary needs and facilities. We will not imitate any design. There is a fundamental fact about architecture that it can never be replicated and it is always created. It is for the present and the future," he said.
"There is no timeframe set as of now but there is a focus on developing the design. One thing is clear that it will not be derived from the past but it will serve as a specimen for the future. The needs of the present are different as for example, the environmental needs earlier dictated that thicker walls be created to keep the temperature under control in the inner premises of buildings," he added.
Speaking on the objection of AIMIM leader Asaduddin Owaisi on the mosque in Ayodhya, Professor Akhtar said that he is only concerned about the construction of the mosque and not other matters.
"We are just labourers. Those matters are for senior intellectual people who formulate policy. Our duty is to deliver whatever we have been assigned," he said.
"There is no question of feeling lucky or unlucky in this project but there is a satisfaction of serving the society. Our interest in the project is because it is a social venture," he added.
A Trust named, Indo Islamic Cultural Foundation, for building the Mosque and other facilities for the benefit of the general public, was created by the Sunni Waqf Board in July 2020.
In February, the Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Waqf Board accepted the five acres of land provided for construction of the mosque in Ayodhya.
Apart from this, the Trust will also construct a charitable hospital, public library and a centre showcasing the heritage of Indo-Islamic civilisation which will also serve as a research and study centre for the same.