Thiruvananthapuram: A member of the royal family of Travancore said on Monday he was against the "commercialisation" of sacred riches as he deprecated a government proposal for displaying the treasures of the Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple at a museum.

Aditya Varma, a member of the royal family which once owned and managed the centuries-old shrine dedicated to Lord Padmanabha, said it was against any plan to shift the treasures out of the temple complex located in the heart of the Kerala capital.

He, however, said 3D images of select rare jewels, now kept in sacred vaults of the temple, could be displayed at a facility on the premises of the shrine itself.

Varma said that should be done with the consent of the tantri, the head priest, and other people concerned.

He said the Centre and the state government had approached the family with the proposal for a museum where these articles could be kept.

Union tourism minister Alphons Kannanthanam and his state counterpart Kadakampally Surendran had recently placed before the family a proposal to set up a hi-tech museum to exhibit the rare treasures of the temple, Varma said.

"But we have made it clear that we are against any kind of commercialisation of sacred temple treasures. Devotees also have concerns in this regard," he said.

Varma said the matter relating to the temple's wealth and other affairs was pending before the Supreme Court and nobody can take the final decision on shifting the articles be

fore its disposal by the apex court. "We are not in favour of taking the jewellery out of the temple complex. As both the governments are for displaying the temple treasures at the museum, it is okay to showcase 3D images of select ornaments there," he said. PTIThe sprawling temple, an architectural marvel in granite, was in the news after the discovery of priceless treasures in its secret vaults. Five of its six cellars, closed for several decades, were ordered to be opened by the Supreme Court to prepare an inventory while considering a private petition in 2011.

According to sources, a vast collection of gold and silver ornaments, coins, silver and brass platters, crowns studded with precious stones and glittering gold-coated parasols were reportedly found in the vaults. By some accounts, these are worth over Rs 1 lakh crore.

Lord Padmanabha is the family deity of the Travancore royals who had dedicated their kingdom to him and vowed to live as the Lord's " dasas (servants)". The shrine is now managed by a Supreme Court-appointed committee headed by an additional district judge. PTI