KOCHI: The Cochin Devaswom Board is looking forward for sanction from the Archeological Survey of India (ASI) to take up the renovation work of the Mattanchery Palace, the court complex in particular. The application requesting the approval has been pending before the ASI for long. The delay is causing grave damage to the already dilapidated heritage site.“The Pazhannur Bhagavati temple, aitherkovil, needs urgent attention. The ootupura, thidambupalli, shantimadom, too, are in very bad state,” sources in the board said.The board has already filed a revised plan for renovating the palace to the state ASI Director. An amendment to the ASI Act by the Centre in 2010 necessitated filing of the application in a revised form, the sources said.More details, including sketches, were sought about the project. The main objection to take up the renovation work is that the structure is situated in a banned regulated area.But the heritage site has been neglected for a long time. The court complex attached to the palace is a den for anti-socials and is also used as public restroom by passersby. There are reports of theft of wooden beams and other articles from the complex. The entrance to the palace, built in AD 1555, has two arches. The two-storyed palace built around a central courtyard is built in the traditional Kerala style. From outside, the palace looks European in character, but wooden balconies are indigenous features. There is a temple inside the inner court of Pazhannur Bhagavati. Two more temples on either sides of the palace are dedicated to Lord Krishna and Lord Shiva. The palace, with the interiors panelled with wood, has exhibits of the Rajas of Kochi.The Kerala High Court is likely to hear further proceedings by the Cochin Devaswom Board in filing the revised plan on June 15.
Comments
0 comment