BALLARI: Archaeological Survey of India is working at restoring the lost glory of Hampi’s Virupaksha Bazaar that adjoins the world-famous historic temple. The restoration will be done with the technical assistance of Indian Institute of Science.
This is the first time that IISc is involved in a restoration work taken up by the ASI. “We will restore the mantaps in Virupaksha Bazaar to their original state,” M Kalimuthu, Deputy Superintending Archaeologist, ASI, Hampi Mini Circle, told The New Indian Express on Tuesday.He revealed that the proposal was sent to the ASI in 2015, and the bazaar was dismantled in 2016 as it was in a “bad shape”.
“As Hampi is now a world heritage site, the ASI has decided to restore its past glory by using the same method these mantaps were constructed in by the Vijayanagara rulers. We are not using any new material. The entire structure will be placed as it was earlier. No concrete mixture or any of modern things will be used in the work. It is a delicate work. The mantaps will be set up by placing slabs like it was first done,” the deputy superintending archaeologist detailed.