A meeting was jointly held by the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) and the Kalinga Heritage Preservation Trust (KHPT) here on Sunday to discuss the matter of making of a Global Sun Temple in Odisha.
INTACH Odisha chapter Convener Amiya Bhushan Tripathy said both INTACH and KHPT have had several meetings and seminars on the subject of Konark and its conservation in the last decade. Being the only UNESCO world heritage site in Odisha, Konark is tottering on the brink of becoming a glorious ruin. Due to the ravages of time and nature and because of inadequate measures for conservation, Konark may be reduced to a mound of shapeless stones in the near future.
Chairman and founder of the KPTH Trust Anil De said Konark is great not only for its beautiful stone sculptures. It has a lot of intangible heritage presented in the stone art. These intangible heritage deserve to be preserved in a new form as they are important for the contemporary society.
In a research spanning over a decade, the KHPT has designed a Global Sun Temple in the architectural, spiritual and social essence of the fallen Konark. It has been designed as a modern temple for the contemporary world without being a carbon copy of the existing temple. It will showcase the art and architecture of Odishan temples and its iconography. This secular temple of the Sun God will also attract tourists and visitors from far and wise due to its novel concept and presentation. The project cost is envisaged to be around Rs 400 crore.
A memorandum to the Chief Minister of Odisha, signed by 40 members of both the organisations is being sent. The members have expressed that it would be nigh impossible to undertake such a grand and herculean project without the support of the Government of Odisha. The members have stated that the Ram Mandir at Ajodhya was successfully completed as it was a matter of national pride. So, the Sun Temple will be a structure of a global pride.
Others present at the meeting were Sanjib Hota, Anil Dhir, Narendra Mishra, Kulamoni Deo, Manoranjan Mohanty, Debi Prasanna Pattnaik and Nihar Hota.