A mirror image of Hampi's major attraction -- the stone chariot (Photo | Shivashankar Bangar)
HOSAPETE: Monuments in the World Heritage Site of Hampi are facing a new kind of threat with villagers on the periphery of the historical town utilising soil from near the hillocks for construction work, much to the chagrin of heritage lovers. Some local road contractors were lifting the soil near a hillock recently, and after some residents alerted the authorities, it was stopped.
Activists now demand that such activity be stopped immediately before it causes any damage to the monuments. There are several areas where the slightest vibrations from quarrying or movement of heavy vehicles can potentially damage old monuments. Keeping the interest of heritage structures in mind, soil lifting should be banned, they said.Locals point out that the soil is mixed with thin sand, and the mixture is used in several civic works, including road construction.
“The soil holds the boulders and any kind of disturbance is not good for monuments. There have also been attempts at stone quarrying around Hampi, which must be stopped,” rued a resident.Krishnadevaraya, scion of the erstwhile royal family from Anegundi, said that there has been a long-pending demand to stop quarrying activities in the vicinity of Hampi. “Many times, officials do not take proper steps. They must take such incidents seriously,” he felt.
