WARANGAL: Historians and archaeologists on Tuesday urged the government to restore the stepwells constructed by the Kakatiya rulers in the line it is protecting the lakes and tanks across the state.There are many stepwells in the surroundings of the Warangal Fort and in the city including Shiva Nagar metla bavi, Esanna bavi, Akka chellelu bavi, Savathula bavi, Kodi Kuthala bavi, Gadiyaram bavi, Shrungara bavi, Jangamaiah bavi, Gopala Swamy bavi, Konda masjid bavi, Hanuman gudi bavi and Durga Devi bavi. But with no one to protect them, many stepwells are in a state of total neglect and have turned into dumping yards.Historian R. Rathnakar Reddy told Deccan Chronicle that Kakatiya kings established triple ‘T’s such as temples, towns and tanks. The irrigation sector that existed during the reign of Kakatiya dynasty is still strong in the region.The stepwells were constructed 800 years ago with perfect geological composition of rocks and stones of various sizes using sand and lime mortar with soil bearing capacity in various forms. They played a crucial role in harvesting rainwater efficiently and served as the reservoirs of water to fulfil drinking and irrigation needs of people as there were no motors pump sets and electricity those days.Since the Revanth Reddy government is giving a lot of importance to lakes and tanks, it must also focus on stepwells and other ancient structures constructed by the Kakatiyas.The government must announce them as heritage structures and should hand over the responsibility to municipalities to look after them by laying fencing along with taking up restoration and renovation works. They can also set up parks near these structures so that they can attract tourists to spend time at the sites, he added. Namilikonda Ramana Chary, an archaeology lover and aVasthu pandit, urged the government to take measures for the restoration and renovation of stepwells and temples present at the ancient Elgandal Fort in Karimnagar district.Not only the stepwell, there are historic Srirama, Narasimha Swamy and Sri Ranganadha Swamy temples along with Kalyana Mandapams on the premises of Elgandal Fort. Transforming them into venues for cultural events like music and dance, for photography sessions, film and fashion shoots would help people understand the rich cultural heritage of Telangana under Kakatiya rulers, he added.Meanwhile, the restoration of the 12X12 metre stepwell at Shiva Nagar near Warangal Fort, which was believed to be a swimming pool of Rani Rudrama Devi and taken up six years back, are going at a snail’s pace in Warangal.
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