Madurai: PTR P. Thiagarajan, MLA of Madurai Central Constituency where the Meenakshi Amman temple is located and scion of P. T. Rajan family closely associated with the temple for generations, said it is unacceptable that the temple, which reflects Tamil culture and tradition, has been managed in a careless manner.
Thiagarajan’s grandfather Rajan was the first to constitute the temple renovation committee in 1960 after Nayak rule at government’s request. The renovation was done under his supervision. “When I examined the report, it seems the conservation was carried out without following National Culture Policy of ASI and international standards,” said Thiagarajan
His family was also instrumental in forming the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments department with an aim to make the ancient temple accessible to all people, he said adding that reconstruction in the temple needs to be carried out following regulations.
We didn’t violate agama rules, says JC
N. Natarajan, the joint commissioner of Meenakshi Amman temple, said that they didn’t violate e agama principles during the reconstruction of south and east corridors of Potramarai kulam of the temple.
“We have replaced the old pillars in the corridors based on a recommendation of an expert committee formed based on Madras high court bench direction,” he said.
The stone erosion problem was witnessed in the temple pillars in 1990s and the government had constituted an expert committee in 1999 to carry out renovation work based on their recommendations. “Since then we have been carrying it out periodically,” he said.
Only old stones which outlive their life were replaced in the corridors and they are under the custody of the temple, he said adding that no damages were caused to the sculptures engraved on pillars.
He also claimed that the Unesco team didn’t consult them while they inspected the temple. “After we received the Unesco report, we will respond to them in consultation with the expert team,” he added.
