CUTTACK: Even as all the Shiva temples across the State have been decked up for Shivaratri on Monday, the famous Chateswar temple at Kissinapur village under Salepur block wears a deserted look amid darkness of neglect.
Built by Puri King Ananga Bhima Dev III in 1211, the Shiva temple, which was a storehouse of historical antiques, is yet to receive attention and care of the authorities concerned. The temple was exclusively constructed with shining black chlorite stones. Out of the two bigger temples, one is dedicated to Lord Shiva while the other is the abode of Goddess Parvati.
The exquisite outer carvings of Chateswar temple are captivating reflecting the social status as well as the lifestyle of the earlier time. A wide range of artistic expressions engraved on stone on the exteriors of the temple walls can be seen with images depicting different mythological tales, royal activities such as court proceedings, marching soldiers and day-to-day social life.
Beside some detached sculptures and images, a huge piece of black polished stone with inscriptions in an unknown script has been stored inside the dark chamber of the Shiva temple.
While the temple continued to wallow in neglect, locals who do not have professional expertise in maintaining the ancient monument had painted the temple with limestone a few years back. As a result, all artistic stone engraved works became invisible.
“The State Government has turned a deaf ear to our repeated demands. We were compelled to carry out the maintenance work from donations,” said the villagers. They demanded to maintain the monument by the Archaeology department.