By A Staff Reporter
Kathmandu, Jan. 7: The world famous Hindu temple, Pashupatinath, is awaiting renovation.
Several committees were formed to study the condition of the Pashupatinath Temple in the past, and they presented their reports stating that the temple that has been standing for centuries now on the bank of the Bagmati needs repair.

In 2017, a team studied the first floor of the temple and submitted its report stating that rodents had made several holes inside the temple and the wooden posts needed immediate replacement.
Recently, a part of Chhatrawali area of the pinnacle portion of the temple had fallen. During the repair of Chhatrawali, water leakage was found in the section and that has been repaired now, said Dr. Milan Kumar Thapa, member secretary of Pashupati Area Development Committee (PADT).

The leakage of water may have also damaged the wood in the upper part of the temple, but no one is allowed to enter the section to check the condition of the structure, he said.
The PADT has carried out only minor repair works to fix the leakage, and a cleaning task was carried in the roof where dirt had accumulated.
To study the structural condition of the Pashupatinath Temple, a committee was formed under the leadership of Department of Archeology (DoA) around two years ago.

The committee had submitted it reports suggesting further study to assess the overall condition of the temple, said Dr. Suresh Surash Shrestha, information officer of the DoA.
“The COVID-19 pandemic and several religious barriers prevented us from entering the temple to conduct the study properly,” he said.
As per the religious tradition, only Biset and Bhandari of Pashupatinath are allowed to enter the upper storeys of the temple that too only on the day of Balachaturdashi.

“They are not allowed to tell other people the things they saw inside the temple. Such barriers have created difficulties to find out the actual condition of the inner temple structure," he added.
After knowing the religious faith and customs, we had decided to provide all technical knowledge required to study and repair the damaged section to Biset and Bhandari.

The main priest, Bhatta, Bhandari, Biset and other persons who are allowed to enter different parts of the temple expressed their happiness that they could contribute to repair the holy temple of the nation.
“We have also provided training to survey the damaged parts and taught skills to repair the damaged wood and bricks. The COVID-19 pandemic has obstructed the study process and the duration of the study ended without producing any report. The committee was dismissed and several members of the committee were relieved of their assignment,” Shrestha said.

The committee has submitted its report suggesting a need for further study as it was not a comprehensive study. It has also asked the Pashupati Area Development Trust to allocate budget for further study.
The committee has completed initial study and it needs broader study, he said.