The excavated Buddha idol. Telegraph picture

Kendrapara, May 17: An antique Buddha idol and a 30-metre medieval age well were found at a remote village of Kendrapara while labourers were excavating a pond under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee scheme.

Kendrapara and the adjoining Jajpur districts are replete with Buddhist sites.

Sources said the construction workers were digging the pond at Bada ankua village in the Aul police jurisdiction when the chance discoveries were made. The Buddha idol is 30cm long.

Kendrapara sub-collector Pratap Mishra said the villagers had stumbled upon the miniature idol and the well during the pond excavation. He said the well had terracotta steps.

The finding assumes significance as the area is not far away from the Buddhist golden triangle consisting of Udayagiri, Ratnagiri and Lalitgiri — all containing ancient ruins.

The discovery has re-established the fact that Buddhism flourished in large areas of Kendrapara under the Bhaumakar dynasty, said historian Harischandra Prusti.

Other idols have earlier been found in the area, but they were not of Buddha. They are of other Hindu divinities, he said.

Pramod Mallick, a local villager, said: “The idol has found a pride of place in the village temple. People have begun worshipping it.”

Buddha idols and other Buddhist divinities are revered in many Hindu temples in Jajpur, Kendrapara and Jagatsinghpur district.

The Archaeological Survey of India protects Lalitgiri, Ratnagiri and Udayagiri, while there are many other sites in both Kendrapara and Jajpur districts which are treasure troves of Buddhist heritage and legacy.

However, those are yet to be fully explored.