Two committees appointed by the Supreme Court Thursday started taking stock and estimating the value of the jewels, gems and precious metals kept inside one of the six vaults of the ancient Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple here.
The committee members met at the temple Wednesday to plan the valuation process of the items lying inside 'Vault A'.
Gemologists are assisting the committees in the valuation. Equipments have been brought from Germany for the job.
The committees is expected to submit an interim report on the stocktaking to the court Aug 8, a member said.
One of the committees is headed by M.V. Nair and the other by Justice (retd) M.N. Krishnan. The committees also have representatives from the state government, the erstwhile Travancore royal family, the temple's custodians and experts.
In July last year, the committees stumbled upon six vaults in the temple. Five vaults were opened, except for the sixth 'Vault B'.
They estimated the value of the treasure to be more than Rs. one lakh crore, with items in Vault A the most valuable among the five.
When Vault A was opened last year, it was found filled with rubies, diamonds, statues of deities and gold coins.
Last year, T.P. Sunderarajan, 70, a former police officer, approached the court, requesting it to take stock of items in the temple. He alleged that the temple was not being managed properly.
Sunderarajan passed away July 17 last year.