Archaeological survey team to visit Palamu Fort today
LATEHAR: A team of Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) experts will visit the historic Palamu Fort in Latehar district on Tuesday, officials said. The Latehar district administration has also called a meeting to discuss measures for preserving the dilapidating twin Palamu Forts built.
The two forts- old and new – are located in north division of Palamu Tiger Reserve area in Latehar. The forts are a famous tourist destination and part of the Betla National Park tourism circuit.
Of the two forts, the older one is situated on plains, while the newer one is situated on a hill top. Built over an area of three kilometres, the old fort has three gates.
However, these once celebrated forts are presently in a pitiable state, as the massive structure is gradually being reduced to rubbles.
Earlier, the district administration had sent an SoS to the state culture department, underlying the urgent need of protecting the forts.
The district administration has also invited senior professors from department of history of Nilamber Pitamber University
to suggest ways for conservation of these historic monuments.
Latehar deputy commissioner (DC) Abu Imran said, “A high-level meeting with experts and forest officials has been called to discuss measures for conserving the Palamu forts. It will take place on February 23 at Betla.” However, the Jharkhand government in the past had also sanctioned restoration and conservation work for the twin forts in 2005, but work never started at the ground level due to alleged procedural delays in obtaining forest clearance, as the area is part of Palamu Tiger Reserve.