A stepwell spanning 400 square meters has been discovered in the Chandausi area of Uttar Pradesh’s Sambhal district during an excavation by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).
The find comes shortly after the reopening of a Shiva-Hanuman temple in the region, closed for 46 years.
Sambhal District Magistrate Rajendra Pensiya confirmed the discovery on Sunday, describing the structure, known locally as a baoli, as having four chambers and multiple levels, some made of marble.
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“An area of around 400 square meters, is recorded in the form of Ah-Baoli Talab. It is said that this baoli was built during the time of the king of the grandfather of Bilari’s king. The second and third floor is made up of marble and the upper floors are made of bricks. As we saw (from the excavation), around four chambers are there,” Pensiya told reporters at the site.
The excavation began following a public meeting on Saturday that brought the site to officials’ attention. The stepwell, largely buried under mud, is being uncovered by the Nagar Palika team, which has already exposed 210 square meters. Pensiya stated that steps will be taken to remove encroachments and fully excavate the site.
Initial estimates place the structure’s age at over 150 years, according to Pensiya.
Krishna Kumar Sonkar, Executive Officer of the Municipal Corporation, said work began immediately after officials received reports of the underground structure. “We will try our best to restore this, we are working to see what all is here,” said Sonkar.
Meanwhile, an ASI team also conducted a survey at the Kalki Vishnu temple in Sambhal on Saturday. The four-member team inspected five shrines (teerths) and 19 wells, including the recently reopened Shiv-Hanuman temple.
“It was a four-member team. In Sambhal, five ‘teerth’ and 19 wells were inspected by ASI. The new temple that was found was also inspected. The survey took place 8-10 hours…the ancient temple that was opened was also surveyed. ASI will submit its report to us… a total of around 24 areas were surveyed,” the district magistrate Pensiya said.