Kos minars victim of poor conservation

Faridabad/Palwal, February 21

Most of the 15 kos minars (mile pillars) in Faridabad and Palwal districts have been victims of poor conservation and maintenance.

The historical structures have been declared heritage structures and maintained by the Archaeological Society of India (ASI), say sources.

Kos minars are medieval Indian milestones along the Grand Trunk Road. Kos is a medieval measurement of distance denoting approximately 3 km and minar is a Persian word for tower.

Pashtun ruler Sher Shah Suri got kos minars built in 16th century to serve as markers of distance along royal routes. Kos minars are round pillars around 30 ft (9.1 m) in height and built on a masonry platform built with bricks and plastered over with lime.

Lack of repair, encroachments, filthy civic conditions and poor access have left the historical structures in ruins, the sources say.

“Construction within 100 m radius of the pillars is banned. However, land around kos minars have been encroached upon. People make cow dung cakes and dump waste around the kos minars,” said Faridabad resident Varun.

He claimed three pillars had been missing on ground and some more may fall into oblivion in case the authorities failed to preserve them.

“The preservation of one of the minars located in a congested residential colony of Palwal has become a challenge,” added Varun.

Palwal resident Ajay Chaudhary said, “While it is difficult to access some of the kos minars, officials hardly visit the structures. The pillars lie in a state of neglect.”

Some pillars have become victims of industrialisation and encroachments and others have become victims of poor upkeep, it is claimed.

Of the 47 kos minars in Haryana, 15 are in Faridabad and Palwal districts, 10 in Karnal, nine in Kurukshetra, seven in Sonepat, five in Panipat and one in Rohtak.

Deepanshu Vashisht, Conservation Assistant, ASI, claimed: “All measures are in place to ensure proper conservation of kos minars in the region.”