Archaeological Survey Of India: ‘We’ve found missing head of 11th century Khajuraho Vishnu idol, will be restored soon’: ASI chief | India News

Khajuraho’s 11th-century Chandela-era headless Vishnu idol

Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has found the missing head of an 11th-century Vishnu idol at Khajuraho, whose restoration became the subject of a recent controversy involving the Supreme Court, and plans to reattach it after expert examination.ASI has also introduced a three-year deadline for archaeological excavations to curb delays in research and cut approval times for most conservation projects to 15-20 days, director general Yadubir Singh Rawat told TOI in an exclusive interview. He also revealed plans for a preliminary excavation at Ujjain’s Vaishya Tekri, where a Buddhist stupa could be larger than Sanchi’s, although its actual scale and significance remain to be established.Controversy over the beheaded Vishnu idol at Khajuraho’s Javari temple reached the Supreme Court last year when advocate Rakesh Dalal sought restoration, replacement or reconstruction of the seven-foot statue.While dismissing the petition, then CJI BR Gavai had remarked, “Go and ask the deity itself to do something now.”Though Gavai later clarified his remark in court and said he respects all religions and that his statement was taken out of context, his words drew criticism, and a lawyer subsequently attempted to throw a shoe at him inside the courtroom.Rawat said the missing head had been found in an ASI store. “During a visit to Bhopal for the BRICS summit, I learnt that the statue’s head—which had been kept in our store—had been found. The person in charge informed me that someone likely tried to break off the head to steal it but failed to do so. We are having experts examine it and will soon reattach it to the statue.”On delays in archaeological research, Rawat said ASI had introduced a three-year timeframe for completing excavation projects, with permissions continuing automatically across financial years. He acknowledged that some researchers showed enthusiasm during fieldwork but delayed finalising reports, holding up publication of findings.ASI had also granted circle officers financial powers ranging from Rs 50 lakh to Rs 1 crore, reducing the need for approvals from HQ. Rawat said most annual conservation programmes now received clearance within 15-20 days, except those requiring expert consultation.At Vaishya Tekri in Ujjain, a recent survey identified a cluster of Buddhist stupas and a water reservoir. Rawat said the structures differed from Sanchi because they were built using unbaked bricks. The last excavation there took place in 1973.ASI plans to begin with a limited vertical excavation to establish the site’s significance before committing to a larger project estimated to cost Rs 60 crore. “The true picture will only emerge after excavation. We will proceed only after confirming its significance, although the site already falls within a protected area,” Rawat said.He said acquiring and excavating the entire site would require substantial resources, making preliminary investigation necessary to determine whether a full-scale project was justified.On encroachments at protected monuments, Rawat questioned the continued reliance on a colonial-era list prepared under the Ancient Monuments Preservation Act of 1904.“The root of this problem lies in the list prepared by British rulers in 1904 under the ‘Ancient Monuments Preservation Act’—a list that the then-central govt adopted post-independence without any review. The British had included cemeteries and graves of their obscure soldiers, horses, mules, and pets—which they deemed highly significant—among the monuments protected by the ASI. Before adopting that list, a review should have been conducted to determine what was truly important in the national interest,” he said.Rawat said a review in 1953 incorporated state monuments into a definitive list, but the central list remained unchanged. The resulting difficulties eventually led to 17 monuments being removed from it.Explaining disparities in funding, he said allocations depended on visitor numbers, maintenance requirements, security expenses and public facilities. Taj Mahal and Red Fort, he said, served as showcases for ASI, while Taj Mahal’s maintenance required substantial expenditure because of its delicate structure and heavy tourist footfall. ASI paid around Rs 3 crore monthly for more than 200 CISF personnel deployed there.Rawat acknowledged that lesser-known monuments, including the pyramid-like Bhim ki Gada structure in Bareilly, had received inadequate attention. He said ASI circles had been instructed to prepare conservation and tourism development proposals for such sites.On skeletal remains excavated at Rakhigarhi in Haryana, Rawat said ASI had signed an MoU with Anthropological Survey of India and Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences. ASI would lead the project, while the two institutes would examine the remains to determine physical characteristics, age, diet, diseases, sex and other details. A one-year deadline had been set for submitting the report.For Uttarakhand, Rawat outlined plans to trace the historic walking route from Rishikesh to Badrinath and Kedarnath along the left bank of Alaknanda river.