A CORRESPONDENT
GAURISAGAR: The Sivasagar District Ancient Monuments’ Preservation Committee (SDAMPC) recently handed over a memorandum to the Sivasagar District Commissioner demanding the preservation and beautification of the ancient monuments scattered in various parts of the district.
In the memorandum, the SDAMPC stated and demanded the preservation and beautification of the three Dols – Shiva Dol, Bishnu Dol and Devi Dol – on the banks of Gaurisagar Pond and the Namdang stone bridge of the district. They demanded that the boundaries be demarcated by installing concrete barriers on all four sides of the Jamuna in Sivasagar town and by placing concrete poles around all the tombs from the Ahom era. A press release issued by Sushil Barua, president, and Manoj Kumar Gogoi, secretary, of the SDAMPC stated that ancient monuments have not been properly preserved and beautified; most of the tombs, ponds, forts and stone bridges built during the Ahom dynasty are on the verge of collapse due to lack of preservation. The ancient monuments have been lost over time due to the establishment of government and private offices, educational institutions, public institutions' offices, etc. The beauty of the monuments shines only in the pages of history. In contrast, in reality, only a grey picture is seen. The committee has been demanding from the district administration and the government for the past decades to free these monuments from encroachment, preservation and beautification, but the government and the archaeological department have not paid any attention to the demands of the committee.
The SDAMPC also stated that only some officers and employees of the archaeological department have been exploiting government funds in the name of preservation and beautification of monuments and implementation of schemes, which has resulted in inadequate maintenance and further deterioration of these historical sites. There are many reasons why the government should not take immediate action against the Gauri Sagar Pond.
Recently, there have been witnessed degradable pictures of the three dolmens of Gaurisagar and the Namdang stone bridge on the banks of Gaurisagar Pond. They warned that if the relevant authorities do not take appropriate action regarding the demands outlined in the memorandum, they would initiate a democratic agitation.
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