Kalmandapam to be ready after month-long delay

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The restoration of Sree-padhmanabhaswamy temple Kalmandapam which was pulled down on March 1 will be completed on Monday. The final touches for the mandapam was in progress on Friday under the guidance of Kerala State Nirmithi Kendra.

The work had crossed the deadline by over a month due to several rounds of qualitative alterations that were suggested by Vaasthu experts to structures that had to be reworked a second time in a month. “The mandapam has been restored. Lime mortar was used for bonding granite slabs on the roof and slanting structure on top of the madapam. All the seven member worker team who are employed are experts from Myladi, not the usual workers,” said an engineer.

One of the six pillars of the old mandapam was unusable and it was replaced by materials procured from Myladi, Tamil Nadu. The abrupt demolition of old mandapam had created controversy before two months and district administration had sworn to restore it to old glory.

Though experts had erected the structure on a newly built basement earlier itself, it had to be pulled down again as soil on the basement had to be replaced with purer sand. Vaasthu experts under Kanippayyur Krishnan Namboodiripad also supervise the work.

Meanwhile the officials are yet to lay hand on another similar stone mandapam adjacent to the tantri madom.  “The weak Tantri madom could be affected if we do a proper restoration of that madapom which had caved in,” an engineer said.