Anantapur: Marauding treasure hunters destroy heritage in Seema

Anantapur: The human sacrifice at the Lord Shiva temple in Kortihkota, reportedly by treasure hunters who offered the blood of the three murdered persons to the Shivalingam and surrounding parts of the temple, has galvanised the police.

As no effective action has been taken to curb hunters of hidden treasures, hundreds of centuries-old temples and sculptures have been destroyed by such gangs in the Rayalaseema region.

Durgams (forts on hills) are a natural defence system. There are more than 20 such forts in various parts of the Rayalaseema region that were constructed by the Vijayanagar rulers.

Experts say each durgam took 10 years to build, but today, most of them are in a dilapidated condition, having been ruthlessly destroyed by those in search of hidden treasures in the forts. Gooty fort, that goes back to the 7th Century AD, had 15 small forts inside its premises along with a large number of wells.

The treasure hunters are encouraged by political leaders. Their greed has destroyed or damaged many ancient structures. Many cases are pending with the archaeology department.

An ancient Ganesh statue at Lepakshi was stolen two years ago and the case is pending with the police.

A 400-year-old Shivalingam was stolen from a temple in Dharmavaram town by Tamil Nadu-based treasure hunters two years ago. The police recovered the Shivalingam and arrested members of a gang.

Many structures in Penukonda were destroyed when a self-styled Baba allegedly began digging up treasures there two decade ago.

In the recent incident in Korthikota, the sacrificial victims were a retired teacher, Shivarami Reddy, his wife Kamalamma and sister Satyalakshmi.

There are rumours that tons of gold and diamonds were shifted from Hampi, the main capital of Vijayanagar, to Penukonda, the summer capital after the Tallikota war.

Many gangs are involved in cheating people by showing fake documents and maps of treasures preserved in hills and temples.