18th century Quilashapur fort wall collapses following heavy rains in Telangana

JANGAON: A portion of the wall of the Quilashapur fort built in the 18th century by Sarvai Papanna, which had remained neglected for several years, collapsed on Thursday, following heavy rains in Jangaon district over the past couple of days. Three houses adjacent to the wall were also damaged. However, no one was injured in the incident.

Speaking to The New Indian Express, Raghunathpally Mandal Revenue Officer B Bansi Lal said that three houses were completely damaged in the incident. He said that as a pre-emptive move, they had shifted 30 people from 10 families from houses adjacent to the fort's wall to the Government High School in the village.

Residents alleged that they had made several complaints to government officials about the crack that developed, leaving the wall in a precarious condition, but no action was taken.

It may be mentioned here that the Telangana government had declared the fort a tourist spot and sanctioned Rs 4.5 crore for its renovation but till now there is not much visible change.  

Telangana State Archaeology department officials told The New Indian Express that Rs 2 crore of the sanctioned amount has been released and renovations worth Rs 1 crore have already been completed on the east and west sides of the fort.

Officials said the wall that collapsed was located on the northern side of the fort, where renovations are yet to be taken up.

The wall had developed a crack of around 15 metres in length due to heavy rain in August. An engineering team had visited the spot and a report was prepared on repair work at an estimated cost of Rs 19 lakh. The report was submitted for sanction of funds but the work has not started yet.

The fort was constructed around 350 years ago by Sarvai Papanna, also known as Sardar Sarvai Papanna or Sardar Sarvai Papadu, who, as the legend goes, fought bravely against atrocities on the poor and oppressed sections of society during the Nizam's rule. The fort was constructed in a square plan with massive bastions at its four corners.