The iron scaffoldings around the 13th century Sun Temple at Konark, a world heritage site, will be removed in a month after the Roorkee-based Central Building Research Institute said they were not required anymore.
Officials of Archaeological Survey of India that is in charge of upkeep and maintenance of the temple said a three-member team of Central Building Research Institute gave their assent after inspecting the temple.
ASI Bhubaneswar circle superintendent Arun Mallik said the scaffoldings installed around the temple in 1990 for study of the safety of the structure has been completed.
“Contrary to popular misconceptions, the scaffolding is not supporting the temple. That was erected for going up the temple to study the structure and document its conditions. CBRI has submitted two volumes of report after its study,” said Mallik.
Badal Das, president of Konark Suraksha Samiti, a local outfit raising its voice for better preservation of the temple, said the removal of the scaffolding was a welcome step. “It should have happened long ago. The scaffolding made the structure look ugly,” said Das.
Mallik said in 2015, CBRI had carried out a 3-D laser scan of the monument using a ground penetrating radar. It had inserted 5 robotic cameras in the temple’s interior from four sides through its wall and also from the temple’s top. The 3-D scan gave a clear picture of the entire layout and structure of the temple.
The Sun Temple was built at Konark by Ganga dynasty king Langula Narasingha Dev about 800 years ago to worship the Sun god. About 1,200 stone craftsmen and artists constructed the temple over a period of 16 years
The team of experts will inspect the condition of different parts of the temple and collect sand samples of the Garbha Gruha, said sources.
The iron scaffoldings were installed to support the stones placed on the temple premises. Tourists were unable to see the fine art work of the temple due to the scaffoldings.
“CBRI has been studying the situation at Konark Temple for many years to identify the problems and find possible solutions. The process of removing the scaffoldings will be completed in the coming months,” said ASI Superintendent, Arun Mallick.
Between 1900 and 1903, the British government had undertaken a major preservation work of the Sun temple and sealed its interiors with sand to prevent the structure from collapsing. The four entrances to the structure were sealed off and its inside filled with sand to prevent the structure from collapsing. However, the amount of sand has caused cracks on the structure from inside.
ASI officials said a decision on removing the sand from interiors of the temple would be taken after CBRI submits its report.
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