4-lane NH 37 construction, Ancient Minaret in Nagaon to be shifted 70 ft away

Samuguri: Say it a modern way of preserving ancient structures or not, one of the ancient Minaret which was built more than 100 years back at Purnigudam area in Nagaon District will be shifted from its present site due to the construction of the ongoing four-lane National Highway 37 without getting dismantled.

The Minaret has always been the symbol of unity among Hindus and Muslims living in the region, as per the local people. However, there are reports surfacing in the media that the Government of Assam had ordered for shifting of the Minaret to 70 feet away from the original site.

Alongside the ancient two-storeyed Minaret, there is a Bormasjid (Mosque) as well.

It is to be noted that the shifting work of the Minaret had been entrusted to a Haryana based company RR and Son's. One of the engineers of the company RR and Son's, Gurdeep Singh said, "the work will be completed within 15-20 days".

The engineer also informed that shifting of the Minaret without dismantling it is made possible with the introduction of a hydraulic system.

It may be mentioned that the ancient Minaret was constructed by a famous mason from Dhaka in the year 1909, the Minaret is made of clay and lime stands still with no inner iron structure. Instead of iron, bamboo was used in it. A paste of rice and eggs was used to make the cement for its construction which is similar to the ancient monuments constructed in Assam.