Updated: November 19, 2020 1:47:38 pm
Nripendra Mishra, chairman of the Ram temple construction committee, said that the issue of sandstone supply from Rajasthan has not been raised before the panel.
The Rajasthan government has decided to seek as a matter of “top priority”, a central authorization under the Forest and Wildlife Laws to denote the Bansi Paharpur block of the Band Baretha wildlife sanctuary in Bharatpur to allow the extraction of the sandstone. only pink rose found in the area.
Over 1 lakh cubic foot of sandstone from Bansi Paharpur, coveted for its unique pink hue, has already been sourced as the exclusive material for the construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya, where storage began shortly after the shilanyas in 1989.
Although mining was not allowed on paper after 2016, illegal operations continued and the Bansi Paharpur sandstone remained available on the gray market. However, the supply has apparently dried up since the Bharatpur administration seized 25 trucks loaded with illegally mined pink sandstone at Bansi Paharpur on September 7.
Following the raid, officials from Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) in Ayodhya warned against blocking the supply of pink sandstone. “We wanted the congressional government in Rajasthan to understand that building the temple is a job of the nation. A solution has been found every time an obstacle gets in your way. We will welcome any move to legalize the Bansi Paharpur mines, ”Sharad Sharma, regional spokesperson for VHP in Ayodhya, told The Indian Express.
In a communication marked “Most Urgent” on October 23, Rajasthan Deputy Secretary (Mines) OP Kasera asked the Mining Director to request the Bansi Paharpur block denotation on the Union Ministry’s Parivesh portal as a “Top priority” issue. Kasera declined to comment on what prompted the state government’s move.
When asked if the mines were being legalized to facilitate the supply of pink sandstone to Ayodhya, Bharatpur District Magistrate Nathmal Didel said: “There is nothing written about supplying stone for any particular purpose.” “This stone is in great demand across the country and the decision was made after a joint survey of the revenue, mining and forest departments,” he said.
But the state Department of Forestry says it has yet to weigh in. “We have not offered any opinion on the matter. The mining department must determine the land on which the denotation request is submitted. Then we will investigate it for forest and wildlife clearings, ”said Sreya Guha, Rajasthan’s chief secretary for forests and environment.
Preliminary work is in the final stage in Bharatpur. “We have conducted a joint study of the 556 hectares in question with the forestry department and are in the process of submitting the denotation request,” PS Meena, superintendent mining engineer in charge of the Bharatpur circle, told The Indian Express.
While the 199-square-kilometer Band Baretha Wildlife Sanctuary was notified in 1985, sandstone mines have been operational in the area since the 1960s. “Illegal mining has been rampant as our pink sandstone gets more ( 500 rupees per cubic foot) than the red sandstone of Dholpur. Be it the elephant statues throughout Uttar Pradesh or the Ram temple, this is the stone in demand, ”said Dilip Singh Rathore, who claimed that he owns the only“ legal mine that was forced to close in 2016 due to the ban. ”.
Since the 1990s, an assembly of artisans has been working on pink sandstone blocks from the Bansi Paharpur mines at the VHP workshop in Karsevakpuram, Ayodhya.
“Between 40% and 45% of the carving work on the ground floor is finished. We have already obtained about 1.1 lakh cubic feet from an estimated 3.5-4 lakh cubic feet of sandstone that the temple will require after expansion in its plan, ”said Sharma of VHP.
“This (Bansi Paharpur) is the king of sandstone. So mixing this with other varieties with red dots and lines is not aesthetically feasible. If there is not enough supply, the only option is to switch to a completely different stone, ”said Ashish Sompura, one of the architects who designed the temple.
Nripendra Mishra, chairman of the Ram temple construction committee, said the issue of sandstone supply from Rajasthan has not been raised before the panel.
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