Balangir, July 23: The ancient monuments of Ranipur-Jharial lie in neglect.

The callous attitude of the ASI, state government as well as district administration towards these rare and ancient monuments has invited concern of scholars, historians and researchers.

When you reach the ruins of Ranipur-Jharial, about 110km from Balangir, you will be welcomed by a signboard outside the entrance reading, “It is a protected monument under the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI)”.

Apart from the 9th century tantric site that is abode of 64 Yoginees, a similar message is found outside the premises of the famous Indralath temple some 100 meters from the Yoginee temple.

But that is all. Apart from the signboards, no protective initiative or sign of maintenance is seen here.

In the rocky outcrop of Ranipur-Jharial, the ruins of the stone temples and 64 Yoginee temples bear the testimony of a glorious bygone era and combine a cross section of religious faiths such as Saivism, Buddhism, Vaisnivism and Tantrism.

The archaeological site, which once boasted at least 120 temples, now has only 52 temples. Most of these are in dilapidated state and need immediate attention of the archaeologists.

The 64 Yoginee temple is a hypaethral temple, which means a temple with an open air circular precinct, that houses the Yoginees in various dancing poses making it a unique monument.

Sadly, 13 of these 64 statues of Yoginees made up of sandstone are missing and some others have been damaged beyond recognition. The stone temples are situated in clusters in various parts of the rocky outcrop and in various sizes.

A short distance from these temples is the temple of brick on a high raised platform. This 20-metre high Indralath temple is claimed to be tallest brick temple of that time. Now, cattle frequent the temple premises and there is none to look after the place.

Lack of maintenance has taken a toll of this 1,200-year-old temple, which is evident from the wild plants that cover the upper part of the temple.

Researcher on the folklore of western Odisha Sanjaya Kumar Mishra said that the origin of Eastern Indian languages such as Odia, Bengali and Assamese could be traced to Ranipur-Jharial. “The Buddhist monks who lived in the monastery here wrote in a language which is none of the three languages, yet it had similarities with all the three languages. It is here that these languages are believed to have flourished,” Mishra said.

The researcher said that the site lies neglected, as the ASI does nothing.

“ASI has deputed staff here. But they never come to the site. The place has neither a guest house nor any private homes to station the tourists,” he said.

Eminent historian Sadananda Agarwal, who has done extensive study on the Ranipur-Jharial monuments, told The Telegraph that the recent discovery of some copper plates from the area has thrown new light on the monuments.

He said: “The Yoginee statues of Ranipur-Jharial give us a true reflection of what Yoginee cult is about as written in the scriptures.”

A few years ago historian and archaeologist Satyanarayan Nanda, who used to teach history in Rajendra College here, had filed a PIL in Orissa High Court seeking direction from the court to the state government to constitute a governing body consisting of the members of local people, historians and archaeologists to conserve the monument.