Balangir’s 64 yoginis now national treasure

An ancient complex housing ruins of over 52 temples in the twin villages of Ranipur-Jharial in Odisha’s Balangir district is finally on its way to get the “national heritage” tag.

The site has a famous shrine known as Chausathi Yogini temple showcasing 64 yoginis in various dancing poses, which is already a centrally protected monument.

Sources in the Union Culture Ministry said now a proposal to bring the 52 temples in and around the Chausathi Yogini temples in the fold of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has been approved. The ASI will soon issue a notification declaring the temples as national heritage.

Dating back to the 9th/10th century AD, pertaining to the reign of Somavanshi Keshari kings, the plethora of temples showcase cults such as Shaivism, Buddhism, Vaisnavism and Tantrism.

The “national importance” tag will put the site on the world tourism map, and it will get conserved, preserved and maintained by the ASI on priority basis, as per archaeological norms.

The inclusion of group of temples at Rani Jharial will take the list of monuments/sites in the country that have been declared as national importance to 3,687 and in Odisha to 73, a senior ASI official said.

However, dillydallying in ensuring timely protection on the part of the Centre as well as the State Government has cost the site over 30 temples over the years while some of them are damaged beyond recognition. 

Once the site used to house 120 temples, now it has only 52 temples. Most of these temples are in a dilapidated condition and need immediate attention. Sadly, 13 of the 64 structures of yoginis at the Chasuathi Yogini temples made up of sandstone are missing and some need immediate conservation.

According to ancient belief, Ranipur was the place where the queens of Patnagarh used to stay. Jharial used to be a fort.

The place is surrounded by a host of historically important sites like Narisinghnath, Maraguda, Podagarh, Asurgarh, Belkhandi, Saintala and Patnagarh.

The ruins of Indralath temple, Kapileswar Mahadev temple and the remains of the Dhabaleswar Mahadev temple in Ranipur will be declared monuments of national importance, said the official.

As per the ASI’s notification, Somesvara group of temples and its adjoining monuments in Jharial, the Indralath temple, the remains of the Kapileswar Mahadev temple and the Dhabaleswar Mahadev temple in Ranipur will be protected. The temples are dedicated to a host of deities, including Shiva, Vishnu and Yogini, as per the ASI reports.

The group of temples showcases a host of different architectural styles like rekha, khakara, pidha and hypaethral. The material used for construction range from granite, sandstone, and bricks.

As per the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958, ancient monuments or archaeological sites and remains, as the case may be, which are of historical, archaeological or artistic interest, and have been in existence for not less than 100 years, are declared by the Central Government as that of national importance.

The protection and maintenance of monuments, declared as of national importance, is taken up by the ASI by way of structural repairs, chemical preservation and environmental development around the monument, which is a regular and ongoing process and the required works are taken-up on need basis as per the established principles of conservation, subject to availability of resources, as per the ASI website.

In addition, the monuments of national importance are ensured tourist-related amenities such as drinking water, toilet blocks, facilities for physically challenged, pathways, cultural notice boards/signage, vehicle parking, cloakrooms among others.