Stones missing? Puri temple to document ‘garbha gruha’ design

BHUBANESWAR: The Puri Jagannath Temple administration will document the structural design of the sanctum sanctorum (garbha gruha) — where the sibling deities are worshipped.
The decision follows the recent allegation made by some servitors about a few stones missing from the sanctorum.
Some servitors had last week alleged that a few stones from a lotus-shaped structure on the ratna simhasan, the elevated pedestal where the deities are placed, have gone missing. The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), which took up the conservation of the 12th century shrine in 1975, is also inquiring into the matter.
“We will go for the complete documentation of the structures, architecture and stones inside the sanctum sanctorum. Photography and videography of the stones and architecture of the sanctum sanctorum will be made and preserved as evidence. If allegations of stone misplacement or disappearance crop up in future, the documentation can be furnished as proof,” temple’s chief administrator Krishan Kumar said.
Temple sources said the sanctum sanctorum was nearly 30ft (8.5 metre) long and 30ft (8.5 metre) wide. The ratna simhasan is 16ft long, 13ft wide and 4ft high.
Amid allegations of ASI’s poor upkeep of the shrine by the servitors, the archaeological authorities have denied such negligence on their part. “We did not replace any stone from the sanctum sanctorum. Unlike servitors and temple officials, who have easy and frequent access to the sanctum sanctorum, ASI officials need prior permission from the temple body before entering the hall for any kind of inspection,” ASI’s superintending archaeologist Arun Malik said.
“We carry out the inspection of the garbha gruha only during the Rath Yatra, when the deities go on the annual sojourn to the Gundicha Temple. Our work inside the temple is conducted in the presence of temple officials and servitors,” Malik added.
Notably, ASI officials had last carried out repair work on the sanctum sanctorum in 1992. On August 13, 1992, two pieces of corbel stone weighing about one tonne fell inside garbha gruha in front of the ratna simhasan. During the repair work, the deities had to be shifted to a temporary pedestal inside the temple from the sanctum sanctorum.