Stone slab falls from Konark temple

KONARK:  Another stone slab fell down from the Sun temple on Sunday raising questions about its conservation being carried out by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI). The slab reportedly fell in the southern part of the temple.
This is not the first time that stone slabs have come crashing down. On June 4 this year, one such incident occurred in which four slabs of the Black Pagoda came out.
The blame game, however, continues between the State Government and the ASI over the issue of conservation of the national heritage site.
On the other hand, the locals have formed Konark Suraksha Samiti (KSS) demanding proper restoration of the Sun temple.
The samiti has been demanding withdrawal of the entry fee being collected by the ASI. It also wants that a local body should be formed to monitor the restoration process. A part of the funds raised by the ASI should be specially earmarked for the restoration and conservation of the heritage site, the samiti feels.
However, superintending archaeologist of ASI A K Patel dismissed reports of stone falling down from the temple as baseless. He said that there is no such report with him. The State Government also has no information on this.
Other than creating tourism infrastructure in Konark, the State Government directly does not have anything to say on the conservation of the temple since it is handled by the ASI, a senior official said.
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