Centuries-old lamp collapses in Ajmer Dargah

JAIPUR: A centuries-old chiragdan (lamp) collapsed inside Ajmer Dargah on Monday when repair and maintenance work was on within the dargah premise. The chiragdan, a 10-feet tall lamp carved out of white marble, broke into two pieces after the fall. However, no injuries were reported.
Shakil Ahmed, Dargah Nazim (CEO) called the incident ‘unfortunate’. He said, “For the past two days, this particular site was being relayed as water seepage had weakened the old structure. Today, when it rained during the afternoon, the lamp collapsed. We have initiated an enquiry to find the reason behind the sudden collapse of the lamp.”
The CEO further informed that the construction that was going on was being done in sync with all the protocols. He added, “This repair work had been permitted by me after evaluating the gravity of the damage caused by the seepage of water. Since the pilgrims are not allowed in the shrine since the lockdown phase 1, the Dargah Committee, a body under the ministry of minority affairs has been carrying out construction work in places that had been screaming for repair work since long.
The Khadim (priest) community had objected to the construction work initiated within the dargah. Syed Salman Chishty, a Khadim at the Ajmer Dargah said, “I demand that the central government constitutes a heritage committee to look into the matter. No construction work (even for an inch) should be carried out until the committee of heritage and monuments experts gives a green signal,” said Chishty.
The Khadim community also accused the Dargah Committee of carrying out the repair work through its employees, guards and peons, who don’t have the know of construction or repair work. Responding to the allegation, Ahmed says that their staff was doing the most general task in construction. “Since the lockdown, they have very less work, hence they were asked to do the general construction work which doesn’t require any skill,” said Ahmed.