Miscreants steal stones, pose threat to 1,700-yr-old rock pool

Salem: Miscreants have been stealing stones and boulders from the rock pool at Periyeripatty near Tharamangalam in Salem district and damaging the 1,700-year-old archaeological site that is known for ‘Brahmi’ stone inscriptions, say local residents and archaeology enthusiasts. A T Mohan, a researcher and archaeology enthusiast, said the state archaeology department was not maintaining the rock pool, which is the oldest archaeological site in the region, properly.According to him, the ancient rock pool was dug by Viyakkan Koban Kanadevan, son of Gogur village chieftain Varamban.“Varamban seems to have been associated with the Sangam period, between the third century BC and third century AD. Data available with the archaeological department confirms that the rock pool could be at least 1,700-year-old,” Mohan said while pointing out that some miscreants had been removing boulders from the area with the help of earthmovers.The residents of Periyeripatty said some anti-social elements were consuming alcohol at the site.M Gunawathi, a local resident, said the women were feeling unsafe to go anywhere near the rock pool’s vicinity after 6.30pm, as the drunk men were indulging in eve teasing.The archaeological department had earlier set up a fence across the site to prevent intruders and deployed security personnel to man the site round the clock.However, local residents said the security personnel were often leaving the site unattended.While miscreants have damaged the fencing, they said, the archaeological department had not taken any step to get it fixed.Pointing out that some students had been researching the site, they said any damage to the site would be a setback for them.The local residents urged the archaeology department to take necessary steps to preserve the rock pool before it was reduced to rubble.When contacted, G Prasanna, archaeological officer for Salem, Dharmapuri and Namakkal districts, said he had not noticed any miscreants during his visit to the site in the last week of May. “I will check personally and take necessary steps if stones and boulders are being stolen from the site,” he said. He also assured that necessary steps would be taken to preserve the ancient site.