JORHAT, Aug 26 - The damaged portions of the walls of historic two-storied royal sports pavilion Ranghar will glisten again by October-end with the touch of ancient-masonry, as the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has started ornamental plastering and a few other renovations at the glorious Ahom architecture.
To keep the ancient architecture alive for the visitors and extend the life to the architecture of Ahom period, the renovation works are done with the lime-surkhi mortar and some other construction materials which are used to renovate ancient architecture without causing any damage to the original construction.
�Five masons of West Bengal have been engaged in the task. The renovation works will be completed before the ensuing Durga Puja,� said Bikash Das, a senior conservation assistant of ASI.
Ranghar, which attracts thousands of domestic and foreign tourists every year to Sivasagar district, was constructed during the reign of Pramatta Singha in 1746 at a little distance from his royal fortified palace Talatalghar and the king and his senior officers enjoyed several indigenous games like birds fight, buffalo fight and wrestling from this pavilion.
Officials of the ASI said that the project cost of around Rs 1 crore was provided by ONGC under the National Cultural Fund (NCF) to renovate the heritage site.
