Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, Aug 19: In what could be termed as valuable addition in the sculptural treasure of the State, yet another un-noticed rock-cut Buddha statue has been discovered in the remotest corner of Kargil district. With this, the total number of Buddha statues, which are hardly found in the country in general and North India in particular, has gone up to three in Jammu and Kashmir.
Official sources told EXCELSIOR that third Chamba Buddha statue located in Apathi area, 18 kilometers from Kargil on Batalik road, received the spotlight when Consultant to the State Ministry of Tourism and Culture and former Director General of Archives and Archaeology, Khursheed Ahmed Qadri was on official visit to Kargil to chalk out strategy for conservation of earlier detected Chamba Buddha at Suru Kartse village near Sankoo on Kargil-Zanskar road in the recent past.
Soon after getting information about the third Buddha statue in the district, Mr Qadri along with Executive Councilor of Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC), Kargil, Phonchok Tashi and several officers rushed to Apathi, a small hamlet which can be reached by covering 18 kilometer distance in vehicle and another two kilometer on foot.
After minutely observing the statue, which remained unexposed to world outside the small hamlet because of least knowledge about its significance, Mr Qadri and Executive Councilor took up the matter with Minister for Tourism and Culture, Nawang Rigjin Jora, who accordingly directed the Department of Archives and Archaeology to set in motion an exercise for declaration of recently noticed Buddha statue as State Protected Monument, sources said.
One such statue situated in Mulbik area on Kargil-Leh National Highway is being protected by the Archaeological Survey of India while as second one at Suru Kartse was declared State Protected Monument vide SRO No.261 dated March 16, 2012.
“The recently noticed third Chamba Buddha statue is 26 feet high and 6 and half feet wide. It is nicely carved on soft rock. It was constructed between 6th to 7th Century”, Khursheed Ahmed Qadri said when contacted, adding “this is for the first time that this statue came to the notice of Government. It has found no mention anywhere till date”.
Describing third Buddha statue as valuable addition in the sculptural treasure of the heritage rich State, the Consultant to the Ministry of Tourism and Culture said, “history tells us that entire Ladakh region had been once the fabulous stronghold of Buddhism and that many Buddhist missionaries proceeded to Tibet and other areas via Ladakh for disseminating the message of peace brought by the Buddha”.
Mr Qadri, who in the month of June this year attended North Zone Workshop on World Heritage Tentative List of India organized by Advisory Committee on World Heritage Matters, Union Ministry of Culture and made power-point presentation on heritage sites of all the three regions of Jammu and Kashmir, said, “the addition of one more rock-cut Buddha statue in sculptural treasure of the State would make our point stronger for inclusion of several heritage sites in the Tentative List as such statues are hardly found elsewhere”.
Trending Now
E-Paper
Follow our WhatsApp channel