Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple Honoured With UNESCO Award
The Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple in Srirangam has bagged an Award of Merit from Unesco for conserving cultural heritage.
The temple got the international recognition for the Rs 20crore beautification and renovation work taken up prior to a consecration ceremony in 2015, without affecting its centuries’ old heritage.
Temple authorities said they received a communique from Unesco on Tuesday mentioning that the temple has been selected for the award. The Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple is the first temple in Tamil Nadu to receive a Unesco award, according to them.
The renowned Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple in Srirangam, which is among the 108 divya desams, has been recognised with an Award of Merit, 2017, from Unesco’s Asia Pacific award for cultural heritage conservation.
Of the 43 applications from 10 countries across the Asia Pacific region, the Unesco received, the Sri Ranganathaswamy temple is the only religious shrine in south India to bag this award. Mumbai’s Christ Church and Royal Bombay Opera House were the other monuments in India that received the Award of Merit this year.
Words of praise from the UNESCO jury came as music to the ears of the temple authorities, especially in view of the criticism of the renovation project from a group of people, who have also taken the issue to the court.
“The project has revealed the original fabric of the shrines, water bodies and landscape within the temple’s four inner enclosures, which were once obscured under layers of inappropriate modern additions and tons of debris. Employing traditional construction materials and techniques, the restoration work was carried out in an authentic manner by local craftspeople in accordance with ancient building principles and rites. The temple today attracts great attention among its devotees and supporters, whose renewed sense of pride and custodianship will ensure its long-term sustainability,” commented the jury.
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