Once grandeur ,Vijeshwar temple in shambles
Avtar Bhat
JAMMU, June 24: Though Government is taking credit of renovating and reconstructing the religious places and shrines in Kashmir having great socio-religious significance, the much talked about renovation and reconstruction plan for Prachin Amarnath shrine in Thajiwara area of Bijbehara in South Kashmir’s Anantnag district is hanging in balance for reasons best known to authorities.
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According to sources, the Department of Archeology and Culture of J&K Government had framed a Detailed Project Report (DPR) amounting to Rs 562.63 crore over five years back for this shrine which has the same religious significance and sanctity as per Hindu religious scriptures which the holy shrine of Shri Amarnath Ji cave has.
The devotees who are unable to visit the holy Shrine of Amarnath Ji due to its treacherous terrain used to visit Prachin Amarnath shrine, Thajiwara on the occasion of Sawan Purnima (Raksha Bandhan) every year to pay obeisance to Lord Shiva.
Devotees numbering thousands from Kashmir and Jammu regions used to visit this holy place every year prior to turmoil that gripped Kashmir in 1989. However after some years the local Management Committee under the banner of Vijeshwar Devas -then Trust re-started the Yatra along with restoration work of the Prachin Swami Amarnath Ji shrine which is also known as Chhota Amarnath and other shrines in the tehsil.
Sources said though the Government gave assurances of renovating and reconstructing this holy shrine and also framed a DPR of over Rs 5 crore over five years back but nothing was done in this regard so far. They said as the annual Amarnath Yatra is approaching and the devotees from different parts of J&K as well as country are likely to visit the shrine on the occasion of Sawan Purnima, but lack of adequate facilities including construction of Yatra Niwas for pilgrims is cause of concern.
Sources said the plinth of Yatra Niwas was laid in the year 2012 by the Tourism Department but it has failed to construct the same in last over one decade. In addition to this the district administration Anantnag approved Rs five lakh for installation of a hand pump at the shrine but that proposal was also shelved at last moment and the funds got lapsed despite the fact that the hand pumps for other shrines were timely completed except the Prachin Amarnath Ji shrine of Thajiwara.
This has led to a lot of resentment among the devotees visiting the holy shrine annually and Hindu community of tehsil Bijbehara, sources added.
The Trust from the funds collected through donation has however started some renovation work at the shrine for the facility of devotees on its own, sources, said,adding recently the Pran Prtishtha of Shivlingam which was recovered from the ancient spring at the shrine during its cleaning last year.
Showing concern over the neglect of ancient shrines in Bijbehara tehsil, the Devasthan Trust also accused the Government of not taking any steps in renovating the ancient Vijeshwar temple in Bijbehara town which is in shambles.
President of the Trust, Sanjay Tickoo Dembhi said this temple which is connected with the history of Bijbehara is an ancient monument and it was because of Vijeshwar temple, the town was named as Bijbehara and it was a great learning centre up to medieval times where a University also existed and scholars from far and wide were coming there for learning to fulfill their thirst of knowledge.
It is said the dome of Vijayeshwara temple was so high that its shadow was believed to fall on Mattan Wudar (a plateau in Mattan) in Anantnag district and Awantipora, another town on Jammu -Srinagar National Highway in Pulwama district.
The members of the Trust said this ancient temple was founded by emperor Vijaya. However, the shrine was there before him since the time of emperor Ashoka. The temple constructed of stones was a marvel and had added to the grandeur of Vijeshwar town. However, the temple suffered a huge damage during the time of foreign invaders but was later reconstructed by Maharaja Gulab Singh, the first Dogra ruler of J&K.
This temple is presently in total dilapidated condition and successive Governments failed to restore its glory, said Tickoo.
He said the temple once called as grandeur of yore should be preserved as an ancient monument for promotion of pilgrimage tourism along with holy shrine of Prachin Amarnath Ji.
When contacted, Director Archaeology and Museums J&K Government, K K Sidha said that DPR is to be finalised and approved in the Executive Committee meeting constituted by Government in this regard. He said within 10 to 12 days, the Committee will meet and the DPR for holy shrine of Amarnath Ji at Thajiwara will hopefully be finalised.
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