Pimpri-Chinchwad: A 250-year-old Riddhi-Sidhi Ganapati temple was uncovered near the Pawana River in Pimpri-Chinchwad on Monday. The deity idols were found during routine cleaning work. A small black stone temple, measuring approximately 2 feet by 3 feet, containing six intricately carved idols, was found. It includes a seated Ganapati adorned with a crown, a broken Nandi, and a Shiva lingam.
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The temple's discovery sheds light on Chinchwad's rich cultural history. The idol was found in the Chinchwad Gaon area on Monday afternoon. Chinchwad Gaon is known for its association with saints like Moraya Gosavi and the freedom fighter Chapekar brothers. It has a very old cultural and spiritual history.
250-Year-Old Temple
Nearby this area, remnants of a water reservoir, once used to supply water to local temples and villagers, were also found. The area, historically significant, has previously yielded ancient temples during excavations. Local historians estimate the temple's age to be around 250 years.
After the discovery, officials from Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) and local police were called. It has been preserved, and further study of this will be done by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), officials said.
'Dig Deeper, Find More'
After the idols' discovery, people gathered around them and started worshipping them. Many residents expressed their curiosity over the history of this temple and idols. Discussions were seen by people about who might have built this temple and created these idols and why they were in this state. The exact location of this place is the premises in front of Vastad Balasaheb Gawade Jaltaran Talav.
Local history scholar Nilesh Gawade said, "This area is around 400 years old. The area has a water reservoir, and it used to provide water to the Chinchwad Gaon in old times. The idol found might not be the only one. This place should be cleaned and dug up; many things might be found. After PCMC came into the picture, developmental works were done. However, we studied this, and many references to this place were found in old papers."
