500-year-old temple submerged in Odisha river resurfaces after 11 years

Representational Image (Wikipedia)

A 500-year-old ancient temple that was submerged in Odisha’s Mahanadi River has resurfaced after 11 years.

An archaeological survey team from the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) has claimed discovery of the submerged ancient temple in the river.

The native of Nayagarh district – where the temple resurfaced – claim there are more than 22 such submerged temples in that area alone, India Today reported.

In the past year, the temple was reportedly visible for four to five days due to change in the water level.

Sometime in the middle of the 19^th century, the deities were removed from the temple and transferred to a safer, higher place. The area where they are now kept has come to be known as the Gopinath Dev temple and it is located in Padmavati village.

Based on the construction style of the Mastaka and the type of construction material used, it was deduced that the temple was built in the late 15^th or early 16^th century. The 60-ft temple belongs to Lord Gopinath, who is an incarnation of Lord Vishnu.

Anil Dhir, Project Coordinator, Mahanadi Project (INTACH), said: “We have been documenting monuments of Mahanadi…. Whatever heritage has been submerged, we are documenting it. People already knew there was a shrine submerged in the river, but it had not resurfaced in years."

Meanwhile, villagers have been asked not to venture into the river to catch a glimpse of the ancient structure.