Puri: Gajapati Maharaja Dibyasingha Deb on Tuesday visited Gundicha Temple in Odisha’s Puri town to review the condition of the shrine after cracks were noticed in 3 pillars at Nata Mandap.
“A detailed inspection of the damages revealed the cracks on the pillars and beam that takes the load of the Nata Mandap. The repair work has begun on the basis of the report of a technical core committee. Those will be fixed by February-March next year. The wrought iron beams, which have corroded due to salty air and moisture leading to the cracks, will be replaced with stainless steel ones and matched with the interiors of the Nata Mandapa,” he said after reviewing the plans with senior offers of the Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (STJA) and Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).
The work is being carried out by STJA under the supervision of the ASI.
He further informed that development works will be taken up 5 acres of the shrine land. “Delhi-based Lotus Studio has submitted a comprehensive plan proposal which has almost been approved by the temple administration and work on it will begin soon,” he added.
On October 30, Director of CSIR-CBRI Prof SK Bhattacharya, former chief engineer Bindheswar Patra and chief of the technical core committee NC Pal examined the temple and found cracks on three pillars and a beam of the Nata Mandap.
Notably, some structural damages were noticed in the structure during conservation works for Rath Yatra this year and as a temporary relief, the Nata Mandap was provided scaffolding support.