|
Project Sudhagad
Last chance of Fort Conservation
Maha Darwaza
 |
|
 What
is Project Sudhagad ?
Sudhagad
is a beautiful fort located near the town of
Pali
(famous as one of the Ashtavinayaka locations). The
fort was under the princely state of Bhor and hence was
under maintenance till
India’s
independence. Due to this fact a lot of construction on the
fort is intact. However, neglect over the past five decades
has caused a lot of damage to the surviving
fortifications.
Project
Sudhagad is an activity taken up by Kshitiz group of Dombivli
in order to prevent further deterioration of this valueless
treasure.
Why
Sudhagad?
There
are over 300 forts in this region. However, Sudhagad was
chosen for the activity for the following main reasons
–
- Comparative
ease of access from Mumbai and its
suburbs
- A
good amount of structure is intact. So there is scope to
save a lot
- With
abundant water and shelter a big group can stay overnight
for the activity
|
What
is causing Sudhagad’s deterioration?
As
is the unfortunate case with most of our forts, following are the
main reasons why Sudhagad is getting destroyed day by
day:
- Growth
of vegetation on fortifications – Large trees have grown on the
fortifications. The force exerted by their roots is so enormous, that even
huge stone bricks weighing hundreds of kgs are actually displaced
from their location. This in turn causes gradual collapse of the
structures.
- Effects
of Rainwater – The original structure has provisions for drainage
of rainwater. However, these gutters and channels are blocked by
soil and rocks, forcing the water to flow over the steps causing
erosion
- Human
Interference (graffiti, carelessness etc), which is unfortunately
seen at all our archeological sites.
What
has been done so far under the Project?
-
Partial
removal of small trees, shrubs and cactus from important
fortifications
-
Start
with removal of soil and rocks that are piled up in the Maha
Darwaza
-
Removal
of plastic garbage
-
Plantation
What
still could be done?
Sudhagad
is a fort with a large area on top and has many interesting
structures. What Kshitiz started in June 2004 is just the beginning.
A lot can be done to bring Sudhagad as close to its past glory as
possible. However, need of the day is to prevent its
destruction.
Though
a Herculean task, it can be accomplished with the help of right
resources and more importantly, our will !
A beautiful archeological site closely related to our
recent history will soon be destroyed, if not saved in time. And to
do that we need
YOU
!!
Be part
of the team for conservation of
Sudhagad.
|
Project Sudhagad