File picture of Lingaraj temple lit up during a festival

Bhubaneswar, June 5: The illumination of five major temples in the city with light emitting diodes (LED) will be delayed further with technical aspects of the project yet to be discussed by Odisha Tourism Development Corporation engineers.

The project, which was formulated in 2010 with the Centre subsequently providing an assistance of Rs 4 crore, aimed to light up Mukteswar group of temples, Rajarani, Parsurameswar, Lingaraj, Rameswar and Laxmaneswar group of temples.

Lights have been installed at Laxmaneswar, which is protected by the state archaeology department, while the work is getting delayed in others. Sources said the initial delay was attributed to getting permission from the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), which controls them. Now, technical problems are causing the delay.

Senior engineer of the corporation J.K. Das said: “We have completed the installation of lights at the Laxmaneswar group of temples. Only commissioning of a transformer will finish the task. The work was easy as the state archaeology protects the temple.”

Though for the other four temples the ASI permission has been obtained, the choice of the technology has emerged a difficult task and the technical committees examining the claims of the executing agencies is taking time. The corporation wants to go for the best technology available in the world before finalising anything.

A senior corporation engineer said: “We have already illuminated the Puri Jagannath temple with lights called efficient white, which were mounted on platforms. Only the cable and some switches were to be changed, according to our requirement. However, the disadvantage with this lighting system is that it cannot be moved.”

A better lighting system called intelligent white with changeable location and angle are available for lighting of the monuments and the corporation engineers are looking at the possibility of getting its LED version, which will consume less power. The LED lights consume 80 per cent less power than the conventional lights.

On the other hand, the engineers are also considering the option of more durable LED technology to avoid making frequent changes.

“As the scrutinising teams are inviting presentations from experts in the lighting industry, it is taking time. We want to Bhubaneswar temples to have the same quality of illumination system as is available in the Puri Jagannath temple,” said a senior tourism official.

The corporation has finished the process of issuing tenders for the five temples awaiting illumination in Bhubaneswar.

Tenders for another are yet to be finalised.

“Within a month, all the formalities will be over and tenders will be floated. We will finish the installation within six months after the tenders are finalised,” said Das.

The corporation has spent Rs 1.2 crore on the illumination of Puri Jagannath temple. Another Rs 1 crore will be invested for illuminating parts of Gundicha temple in Puri. Similarly, the cost of illuminating the five temples in Bhubaneswar might escalate from Rs 4 crore to Rs 5 crore.