Telangana government to approve DPR on Ramappa Temple soon

Ramappa (Mulugu)The Telangana government will soon approve the detailed project report (DPR) on the comprehensive development of the Ramappa Temple and the DPR will in turn be submitted to the Union Ministry of Culture and Tourism for its approval, according to officials. Sandeep Kumar Sultania, Secretary to Government (Youth Advancement, Tourism and Culture-FAC), along with ASI Superintending Archaeologist Smitha S Kumar, District Collector S Krishna Aditya and other officials visited the Ramappa temple on Thursday.

After performing puja at the temple, the team inspected the development works being taken up to fulfil the requirements mentioned by UNESCO for the heritage tag given to the temple. Later, Sultania attended the first meeting of the Palampet Development Authority (PDA) formed to oversee the development of the Ramappa Temple.

It may be mentioned here that the managing body of the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) had asked the government to resolve eight issues, while recognising the Ramappa Temple as one of the UNESCO's World Heritage Sites during the 44th session of the World Heritage Committee that was held at Fuzhou in China on July 25, 2021.

The government will have to fulfil the objections raised by the ICOMOS by December 2022.

Identification of boundaries and buffer zone around the temple is one of the major concerns of the PDA. An office has been set up at the Mulugu Collectorate in this regard, and the staff is working on it, Sultania said. The authority will take care of the protection of the Ramappa Temple as per the guidelines of the World Heritage Committee, he added.

The onus is on the PDA to take measures for the protection of four sub-temples of Ramappa and another temple. The PDA will prepare proposals and estimates in this regard, Sultania said. He observed the necessity of taking suggestions from the temple priests and locals for the betterment of proposals. The PDA also needs to take cognizance of footfall of tourists visiting the temple before chalking out a development plan, he said.

"As of now, we have completed 50 per cent of the work. We need to carry out the rest of the work on a war-footing measure," Sultania said.

Referring to the dismantled Kameshwaralayam, Sultania said the temple will be restored using the Anastylosis system. It may be mentioned here that Anastylosis is a reconstruction technique whereby a ruined building or monument is restored using the original architectural elements to the greatest degree possible, combined with modern materials, if necessary, ensuring that the latter are unobtrusive while clearly recognizable as replacement materials.

He said that the Tourism department will prepare an integrated conservation management plan (ICMP) as part of the Ramappa Temple development. Plans are also afoot for the protection of Ramappa Lake under the aegis of the Forest department, he added. He said that the Kakatiya Heritage Trust will submit a research document on the temple and its structural proximity with other temples in Cambodia, Thailand, Indonesia, etc.

Mulugu MLA Danasari Anasuya alias Seethakka, ASI officials led by the Superintending Archaeologist, ITDA Project Officer Ankit, Additional Collectors Ila Tripati, Ganesh, Prof M Panduranga Rao of Kakatiya Heritage Trust, ASI officials were among others present.