ONGC Set to Bring Back Lost Glory of Iringannur Temple
NADAPURAM: The Iringannur Maha Siva Temple, a centuries-old temple in Malabar region, will soon get a facelift as the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) is joining hands with the temple authority for the renovation of the mighty shrine.
The temple authorities say that a `21.8-lakh proposal has been sanctioned by the ONGC for the same and the work on the project is expected to be launched soon.
K C P Sivanandan, secretary of the temple restoration committee, says that the ancient temple, which is under the Malabar Devaswom Board, has cultural and archeological significance. But the devaswom board has not taken a single step to conserve the monument and the board has not allocated a single rupee for the temple since 1910. “As the government authority failed to take up the matter, the temple restoration committee mooted a proposal to renovate the shrine, considering its archeological importance,” says Sivanadan.
The archeological department of the National Institute of Technology, Kozhikode, carried out a detailed study in this regard recently and prepared a master plan at a cost of `5.5 crore to renovate the temple, keeping intact all its archeological and cultural aspects. “As the committee was not capable of meeting the financial burden of the project, the committee, under the presidentship of Hareendran Parekkattil, approached local MP Mullappally Ramachandran for getting financial support from various public sector undertakings for the project. Following the efforts of the MP, ONGC came forward, extending financial support for the renovation work and sanctioned `21.8 lakh under its Corporate Social Responsibility Scheme,” he adds.
As per the plan, the managing committee is planing to renovate the temple in a phased manner. With the financial support of ONGC, the temple pond, occupying 2.09 acres, will be renovated. A toilet complex and a rest room for devotees has also been planned as part of the project. For this, an eight-member monitoring committee, under the chairmanship of District Collector C A Latha, has been formed to ensure the efficiency of the work.
The work, to be undertaken by the Uralungal Labour Contract Cooperative Society, will begin by next month, he says. Sivanandan further adds that the temple restoration committee is keen to get more financial support for completing the renovation project, including the conservation of the centuries-old murals, which are now in ruins. “For this, we are planning to approach other public sector institutions and the public,” he says.