Soumyajit Pattnaik .......Bhubaneswar

 

A BEGINNING has been made to facilitate the entry of the physically challenged people to some of the old monuments and temples in the city. The heritage restoration works surrounding Bindusagar, a holy tank, located near the 11th Century Lingaraj temple in Old Bhubaneswar, are being undertaken in such a manner that every nook and cranny of the place will be accessible to physically challenged persons.

Gentle slopes have dotted the new landscape to facilitate the entry of the physically challenged persons to enter this area. The restoration works around Bindusagar are completely immersed in local mythology, technology and materials.

Anupam Sah of the Hi malayan Society for Heritage and Art Conservation is doing the heritage restoration in collaboration with the state forest department. Sah told the Hindustan Times: "This project is called ‘Ekamra Kanan'. Every element of the design has been picked up from what already exists in Old Town. The entire restoration works are being done only with laterite stones and sandstones.

According to folklore, the Bindusagar tank has water from all the holy rivers from India, even the ones that don't exist anymore but find a mention in the Puranas. The water of the tank is considered to have medicinal quality. The entire Ekamra Kanan will be full of medicinal plants. The Ekamra Kanan will act as the nucleus for greening and revitalizing the historic fabric of the Old Town. One important feature of the project is that the entire region will be completely accessible to physically challenged people once it's completed.

The religious significance of the water of Bindusagar is mentioned in many Hindu scriptures such as the Padma Purana, the Siva Puarana, the Brahmanda Purana, the Kapila Samhita and the Ekamra Purana.

Efforts are also underway to cleanse the water of Bindusagar. Through a small inlet at the northwestern end, the Bindusagar was receiving sewage, water and run off from nearby areas throughout the year. This inlet has been sealed. Instead, Bhubaneswar municipality has been replacing the pond water regularly with fresh water supply. A small outlet at the south allows a limited quantity of tank water to flow out.

Initially, the Old Bhubaneswar had 1,000 temples and at present, only 320 have withstood the ravages of time. Since the 3rd century BC, numerous temples propagating different faiths such as Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism had flourished in the area. Most of these temples are still concentrated in Old Bhubaneswar area.

Historically, Old Bhubaneswar is re garded as the "Ekamrakshetra". The heritage area covers an area of 510 hectares. Many of the existing temples are deteriorating rapidly and the intricate stone carvings are lying in damaged condition. Every element of the new design has been picked up from what already exists in Old Bhubaneswar.

"We are creating an example that things can change through a concerted endeavour," Sah added. Local residents agree with Sah. P.K. Mishra, a local resident told Hindustan Times: "We thought that Old Bhubaneswar's architectural splendour will get completely wiped out. But things have begun to change dramatically within a short span of time."

A project titled "Conservation of the Heritage Tank of Bindusagar" has also been approved for Bhubaneswar under ‘Urban Renewal Sector' by Central Sanctioning and Monitoring Committee in its meeting held in February 2007. Central share committed for this project is Rs 481.04 lakh (80 per cent). The implementation period of this project is 24 months.

soumyajit.pattnaik@hindustantimes.com

URL: http://epaper.hindustantimes.com/artMailDisp.aspx?article=26_02_2008_012_009&typ=0&pub=264