Patna: The most famous protected monuments in Bihar such as the Mundeshwari Temple in Bhabua district and Sher Shah Suri's mausoleum in Sasaram are getting destroyed due to unchecked religious rituals, encroachment and pollution resulting from the overlapping of jurisdictions of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), Bihar State Religious Trust Board (BSRTB) and waqf boards.
Mundeshwari Temple, considered to be among the oldest surviving temples in the country, is a glaring example of this. It is protected by the ASI. Built in stone atop a 608-foot high hill in AD 108, it has a rare octagonal design and is thronged by devotees round the year. Religious ceremonies at the place are regulated by BSRTB.
"You've got to see the way people coming to worship at Mundeshwari temple have applied vermilion and liquid substances all around it while performing rituals. The idol of the deity is also covered with vermilion, heavy garlands and too much clothes," ASI Patna circle superintending archaeologist D.N. Sinha said.
Sinha was speaking at a seminar, "Challenges in the Management of Bihar Heritage", jointly organised by Bihar Puravid Parishad, Maithili Sahitya and FACES (Foundation for Art, Culture, Ethics and Science) Patna in the state capital on Saturday.
Several archaeologists, former bureaucrats and social activists, including Umesh Chandra Verma, Ravi Nandan Sahay, C. Ashokvardhan, Bhairab Lal Das, Shiva Kumar Mishra, Vikas Chandra a.k.a. Guddu Baba, were present.
Archaeologist Sinha alleged that BSRTB had allowed rituals that are detrimental to the temple.
For example, he said, loudspeakers for constant chanting of hymns have been installed. The sound that emanates has the capacity to damage structures, especially the old ones.
BSRTB also got two eyes made of gold and silver, and had them placed at the original idol a few years ago. The change has led to two theft attempts so far.
"The way the temple is being treated by BSRTB and devotees, its life will be significantly shortened," Sinha said.
Similarly, Sher Shah Suri's tomb in Sasaram, a protected monument under the ASI which vies for Unesco world heritage tag, is suffering from encroachment by locals living around its boundary. A mosque and a temple have also come up in the protected area, while the outlet channel for the water body that surrounds the monument has become clogged due to encroachment and filth.
Sinha also listed various reasons ranging from Bihar being too rich in heritage, which in itself poses a very serious challenge in terms of financial resources, and technical manpower needed for their conservation and management.
He added that extreme weather conditions, frequent natural disasters including floods and earthquakes, as well as development projects also pose a challenge in protecting heritage monuments.
Bihar Research Society associate and curator of Maharaja Lakshmishwar Singh Museum in Darbhanga, Shiva Kumar Mishra, described how people have pilfered a Buddhist stupa at Andhrathari in Madhubani district for bricks.
Bhairab Lal Das said the ASI and all other agencies connected to the protection and maintenance of heritage, historic, archaeological monuments were culprits as they allowed rituals to be performed and mosques to be built within their premises.
The speakers also advocated creation of a "heritage commission" to protect monuments and buildings that are not covered by the ASI or state archaeology departments.
