Sharda Peeth:
Home Minister e-inaugurated Mata Sharda Devi Temple dedicated to Goddess Sharda Devi and announced that the government of India will attempt to build a Kartrapur-style corridor to Sharda Peeth as an important step in the direction of discovery of Sharda-civilization and promotion of Sharda-script.
- Union Home Minister said that the government will move forward to open Sharda Peeth on the lines of the Kartarpur corridor.
- Sharda Peeth is an abandoned Hindu temple and ancient centre of learning.
- It is located in the village of Sharda in the valley of Mount Harmukh, along the Neelam River in the Pakistani-administered territory of Azad Kashmir. It lies 16 miles to the northwest of the Line of Control.
- As a Centre of Learning: Between the 6th and 12th centuries CE, it was one of the foremost centres of higher learning, hosting scholars such as Kalhana, Adi Shankara, and Vairotsana.
- It is also said to be where Paṇini and Hemachandra completed and stored their writings on Sanskrit grammar.
- Religious significance: Sharda is the most revered religious place for Kashmiri Pandits. They believe that Sharada in Kashmir is a tripartite embodiment of the goddess Shakti: Sharada (goddess of learning), Saraswati (goddess of knowledge), and Vagdevi (goddess of speech).
- It is one of the 18 Maha Shakti Peethas throughout South Asia that commemorate the location of fallen body parts of the Hindu deity Sati.
