Balasore: Government neglect, lack of conservation efforts and shortage of funds have reduced a historic fort in the district to a dot on the tourism map.

Located in Jaleswar block, the Raibania fort complex witnessed the rule several dynasties and was declared as a protected monument by the state archaeological department. The government also identified it as a tourist site in Odisha's tourism map. But years of neglect have left it in dire need of repair.

Sir John Beams, the collector of Balasore during the British Raj, conducted a study in 1872 and presumed that the fort was built by Mukunda Dev (1559-1568) to protect the area from the Afghan ruler of Bengal.

However, historians disputed this theory. They believed that Langula Narasinha Deba, king of the Eastern Ganga dynasty of Utkal from 1238 to 1264, built the Raibania fort complex to obstruct the entry of Mongols into Odisha.

The Thirteenth Finance Commission sanctioned around Rs 69 lakh for the fort's repair. "Some work was carried out in the fort, but a lot more needs to be done to restore the fort to its former glory," said Jaleswar MLA Ashwani Patra.

He said no major work had been undertaken in the fort in the past three years.

There was a proposal by the Surakshya Committee, a local group that looks after the conservation and preservation of historical monuments, to construct gates on its four sides, but the lack of funds again played spoilsport.

"A monument of prime historical significance is lying in neglect. Elected representatives have only made intermittent efforts to excavate and preserve the fort," said Patra. He also underscored the need for proper roads and a guest house for tourists in the area.

"It is believed the fort was built during the Ganga dynasty according to the plan and design mentioned in Chanakya's Arthashastra. The fort, at different periods in the past, fell in the hands of the Mughals, Marathas and the British," said Srikanta Patra, a researcher and a local resident. He said Ashok Dutta of the University of Calcutta's archaeological department and other scholars had carried out research on the fort.

"The fort has been encroached from various sides and has human settlements inside it," said Aswani Nath, a member of the Surakshya Committee.

District collector Ramesh Chandra Rout said a fresh proposal would be sent to the government for the historic fort's conservation.