People were shell shocked o
n the gloomy Wednesday morning when all television channels and Newspapers came out with the unbelievable news of Rajagopuram collapse at Sri Kalahasthi.The 136 feet high Gopuram,which was five centuries old came down on 26th May to the dismay of all devotees.It was built by the Emperor,Krishnadevaraya in the year 1516A.D. to celebrate the victory over Gajapathi Kingdom.
We published a blog in Tamil (aadalvallan.blogspot.com)in Feb2010 to remind the world about the services of one Ramanathan Chettiar of Devakottai in the early part of 20th century. He contributed several lakhs to renovate the temple at Sri Kalahasthi.Had the tower developed cracks at that time he would have either repaired or reconstructed it single handedly.Allowing the crack to develop for a decade is an unpardonable sin. The more tragic part of it is that nobody holds accountability and apologise for the inaction. Alas! It is nothing but a man made tragedy.
n the gloomy Wednesday morning when all television channels and Newspapers came out with the unbelievable news of Rajagopuram collapse at Sri Kalahasthi.The 136 feet high Gopuram,which was five centuries old came down on 26th May to the dismay of all devotees.It was built by the Emperor,Krishnadevaraya in the year 1516A.D. to celebrate the victory over Gajapathi Kingdom.The structure had developed cracks some ten years ago and it is alleged that no concrete action has been taken by the Temple officials/State Govt to prevent the collapse.Consequently the cracks got widened vertically and the authorities could only corden the are
a to prevent loss of lives. The anger vented by the devotees towards the sluggish attitude of the Govt is understandable. Strangely the Govt does not want to be accountable for the disaster but goes on defending as if their only action is to cordon the nearby area. It has appointed a four member committee to probe into the cause of the collapse. Some geologists are of the opinion that rampant borewell rigging near the temple premises to the depth of 500-600 feet could be one of the reasons for the damage.
a to prevent loss of lives. The anger vented by the devotees towards the sluggish attitude of the Govt is understandable. Strangely the Govt does not want to be accountable for the disaster but goes on defending as if their only action is to cordon the nearby area. It has appointed a four member committee to probe into the cause of the collapse. Some geologists are of the opinion that rampant borewell rigging near the temple premises to the depth of 500-600 feet could be one of the reasons for the damage.The question we ask now is why is that nobody coming forward to reconstruct the Rajagopuram at the same place? Kalahasthi temple is rich enough to do the job on its own. It goes without saying that Tirupathi devasthanam can also contribute a big share in this cause. Notable Industrialists ,Politicians, Moviemakers ,Non resident Indians and Religious Heads could have announced the reconstruction of the Gopuram by this time. It is sad that no such announcement has appeared to be made so far. These personalities appear to be ready to gift invaluable ornaments to rich temples where such gifts have been already made by others.
It is unfortunate that nobody seems to involve and offer assisstance at this dark hour. The Media too thinks that the job is over once they reported the calamity at the Pilgrim centre. Can't they come out with a wakeup call ? Instead they show the debris of the site often to add fuel to the fire.
It is unfortunate that nobody seems to involve and offer assisstance at this dark hour. The Media too thinks that the job is over once they reported the calamity at the Pilgrim centre. Can't they come out with a wakeup call ? Instead they show the debris of the site often to add fuel to the fire.
We published a blog in Tamil (aadalvallan.blogspot.com)in Feb2010 to remind the world about the services of one Ramanathan Chettiar of Devakottai in the early part of 20th century. He contributed several lakhs to renovate the temple at Sri Kalahasthi.Had the tower developed cracks at that time he would have either repaired or reconstructed it single handedly.Allowing the crack to develop for a decade is an unpardonable sin. The more tragic part of it is that nobody holds accountability and apologise for the inaction. Alas! It is nothing but a man made tragedy.
