Remains of 7th century Chalukyan temple found in Guntur district

Vijayawada: Foundations of a Chalukyan temple built in the seventh Century were noticed in and around Terala village under Veldurthi mandal in Guntur district on Tuesday.

The historical remains were discovered by archaeologist and CEO, The Cultural Centre of Vijayawada and Amaravati (CCVA) Dr E Sivanagi Reddy conducted explorations in and around Terala village.

He said he had spotted the remains of a foundation course of the Garbhagriha (Sanctum Sanctorum) and the door Jambs of the temple as part of the heritage awareness campaign taken up by CCVA.

After close examination of the sculpture and based on the Telugu inscription of Jayasimha-I (643 – 672 AD), son of Kubja Vishnu Vardhana, the founder of the Vengi or Eastern Chalukyan dynasty at Terala and also on the Architectural features of Rupulamma temple located very close to the find spot, he said that the remains belonged to 7th century AD and felt the temple has both archaeological and historical significance and the remains must be preserved.

Dr Sivanagi Reddy exhorted villagers of Terala to preserve the historical remains for posterity and requested the officials of the State Department of Archaeology and Museums to conduct scientific excavations at the spot to expose the buried antiquarian remains to view and assess the nature of the temple structure.

He also appealed to the government to shift the Rupulamma temple built in Badami Chalukyan style of architecture, and the only example available in Palnadu region, which is buried up to the roof level in the silt of the local tank, to a higher contour and reconstruct it on modern foundations as part of salvage archaeological operations.

Ch Srinivasachary, sculptor and Jaganadhacharyulu, Agama Pandit from Durgi participated in the exploration he added.