Fani cyclone that left the eastern coast in Odisha battered on May 3 did not cause any significant structural damage to the Sun temple in Konark, a high-level central team that visited the historical monument said on Friday.
The team said that the monument will be opened to public in next 2-3 days. The central team of Archeological Survey of India (ASI) officials led by its DG, Usha Sharma, is in Odisha to also assess the Jagannath Temple in Puri and will submit its report soon.
A statement from the Union Culture Ministry said that the “team visited the Konark in forenoon on May 10, 2019. The team observed that by and large there is no structural damage to the monument”.
The team has informed that there is some dislocation in the scaffolding provided for chemical cleaning at upper level which is being set right. More than 200 trees have been damaged which are being cleared.
The electric and illumination system including internet access has gone out of order, restoration of which will take some time. The monument will be opened to public in next 2-3 days. The chemical cleaning and consolidation of eastern face will be completed on priority. The monument will be restored back to normal within about a fortnight, said a statement here.
The team is now in the process of visiting Sri Jagannath Puri Temple to assess the damage. The State Government had sought help from the ASI to assess the damage caused to these world heritage monuments. The team will also suggest restoration exercise needed for the monuments and the surrounding areas.
Earlier, the Superintending Archaeologist, Bhubaneswar Circle ASI had inspected Monuments including Shri Jagannath Temple at Puri. He found certain damages on the surface but no major damage to the structure of the temple, said the statement here.
The office of Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, in a tweet on Friday, said that he had drawn attention of Union Culture Minister Mahesh Sharma to damage to these temples.
The State Government had sought direction to the ASI for deputing a high level team to assess damage and implement remedial measures ahead of important cultural event of Rath Yatra in Puri, which is slated for July 4.