Rs 5 crore grant for hostel, auditorium lies unused at BORI

Bhandarkar Institute can't proceed with work until land records that were lost in the attack by Sambhaji Brigade are submitted to the PMC

Rs 5 crore grant for hostel, auditorium lies unused at BORI

Bhandarkar Institute can't proceed with work until land records that were lost in the attack by Sambhaji Brigade are submitted to the PMC

The one-year period of the grant that was to be used for building a hostel and auditorium in the institute has lapsed, and the money may have to be returned to the Centre.

The institute, which has rare Vedic manuscripts like the birch-bark Rgvedasamhita to Prakrit dictionaries and Persian manuscripts, attracts research scholars from all over the world.

In 2004, US scholar James Laine, who had used the archives to research for his book on Shivaji, enraged a local vigilante group called Sambhaji Brigade. The book made claims about Shivaji and his guru Dadoji Kondeo that upset the brigade, following which, in January 5, 2004, the 92-year old institute was ransacked by an angryu00a0 mob.

And guess what is delaying the projects? The same 2004 attack, it seems.

'We have lost it'
"The hostel and auditorium plans are ready. These two projects can't go further unless we provide our land records to the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) that were among the many documents we lost on January 5, 2004, when BORI was attacked by Sambhaji Brigade," explained Saroja Bhate, the honorary secretary of BORI.

"These are some of the important works to be done on priority," Bhate said. "We have acquainted the finance ministry with the situation, but are yet to receive a reply. We are hopeful that the proposed work is not affected by the delay."

'PC was impressed'
MG Dhadphale, former honorary secretary, BORI, said he had expended consdierable effort to get the grant sanctioned by ex-finance minister P Chidambaram.

"The minister was impressed with the research undertaken at BORI, when he visited the instutute before he sanctioned the amount in the union budget of 2007-08," he said.

"Exciting news! Mid-day is now on WhatsApp Channels