500-year-old temple resurfaces in Odisha's Mahanadi river

A temple believed to be around 450-500 years old, submerged during floods in 1933, has been found in Odisha’s Mahanadi river. Due to floods in the area over a hundred years ago, the river changed its course and an entire village, along with the temple were submerged at Nayagarh.

An archaeology survey team of the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) said that they discovered the temple recently in the river after its tip partly surfaced. Anil Kumar Dhir, INTACH Chief was quoted as saying that the temple has historical significance as it is 450-500 years old.

He added that the idol from this temple has been taken to another temple. The team is working on a project, documenting the Mahanadi valley, so they were in search of this temple. Around a week ago, the team was informed that the upper part of the temple is visible.

The construction style and the building material used for the temple indicates that the structure dates back to the 15th or 16th century. According to the INTACH Chief, the main deity of the temple is of Lord Gopinath, an avatar of Lord Vishnu.

The resurfaced temple is in a good state and can be re-established with technology.

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According to locals, the temple top was first seen around 11 years ago, above the water level and since then researchers have been tracking it. There are around 65 temples in the area which are underwater but only the mastaka of the temple was visible for a few years, as it was the tallest, the INTACH Chief said.