Jammu Tawi, Oct 17: The historic Shri Ranbireshwar Temple on Tuesday morning faced natural damage due to excessive rains and a thunderstorm.
President, J&K Dharmarth Trust, Brig. R S Langeh (Retd), said that the incident occurred this morning when a lightning bolt possibly struck the temple, causing significant impact to the front outer veranda.
The lightning strike resulted in no harm to the inner sanctum of the temple, he said.
“Fortunately, no casualties or injuries were reported to any devotee or temple employee, as heavy rains and the thunderstorm had prevented devotees from being present at the time of the incident,” he added.
The J&K State Disaster Relief Force, J&K Police, Fire Services, and the Civil Defence swiftly responded to the emergency, providing immediate assistance.
Local representatives, led by the Mayor of Jammu and other government officials, visited the site promptly, assuring all possible help in the restoration efforts.
The Trustees of J&K Dharmarth Trust, headed by Chairman Trustee, Dr. Karan Singh, expressed their dismay and deep concern over the temple's partial collapse of the peripheral veranda and pledged to restore the damaged portion as soon as possible, ensuring that citizens can once again have Darshan and perform Pooja of Lord Shiva at this sacred place at the earliest.
The Trustees, M.K Ajatshatru Singh and Ranvijay Singh, personally inspected the damage and assured the public that a comprehensive audit of all temples under the Dharmarth Trust's purview will be conducted by a dedicated committee.
They also paid their respects to the deities inside and offered the traditional Bhog.
Langeh asserted that the Dharmarth Trust is continuously monitoring the conditions of all temples under its purview and carrying out periodic repairs and maintenance as necessary.
“The incident is an unfortunate natural calamity, and the Dharmarth Trust assured the public that the temple will be reopened after a comprehensive structural survey of the entire complex,” he added.
