Konark will now light up its Sun Temple with solar energy

Published: 7th Mar, 2022

Context

The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has taken up the complete solarisation of Konark Sun Temple and Konark town in Odisha.

About

About Scheme:

The scheme plans to set up the 10-MW grid-connected solar project and various solar off-grid applications such as solar trees, solar drinking water kiosks, and off-grid solar power plants with battery storage,
It is not just the temple; even the Konark town will be covered as part of the scheme.
The implementation of this project will be done by the Odisha Renewable Energy Development Agency (OREDA)
Also, 100% central financial assistance of around 25 crores from the Government of India through the MNRE.

About Konark Sun Temple:

The temple is a World Heritage Site is situated in the eastern state of Odisha and is a massive temple dedicated to the Sun God temple.
The alignment of the Sun Temple is in the east-west direction.
Great poet Rabindranath Tagore wrote of Konark: “Here the language of stone surpasses the language of man.”
The main Temple was called by European sailors "The Black Pagoda" as it formed an important landmark for them in their coastal voyage.
It forms part of the golden triangle of Odisha, along with Puri and Bhubaneswar, and attracts tourists, pilgrims, and history and art lovers.
It was built by King Narasimhadeva I of the Eastern Ganga dynasty from 1238-1250 CE.
The Sun temple belongs to the Kalinga School of Indian Temples.
Its architecture has all the defining elements of the Kalinga architecture. It includes:

- Shikhara (crown)
- Jagmohana (audience hall)
- Natmandir (dance hall)
- Vimana (tower)

In Kalinga Architecture, basically a temple is made in two parts, a tower and a hall.

The walls of both the deul and the jagmohan are lavishly sculpted with architectural motifs and a profusion of figures.
The most repeated form is the horseshoe shape, which has come from the earliest times, starting with the large windows of the chaitya-grihas.
Examples of Kalinga architecture:

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