Racing against time to meet the Allahabad High Court direction of completing excavation at the disputed site within a month, a special team of archeologists will undertake the dig from 8 am to 5 pm daily, beginning Wednesday. A 14-member team of the Archeological Survey of India (ASI) — two members from the Tojo-Vikas geo-mapping firm will join them soon — arrived at the site under tight security this morning and began marking the area. Preparations were also underway for digging trenches in the area specified by the High Court as per the Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) survey report submitted by Tojo-Vikas. Preliminary survey was done in the vicinity of the garbha griha (sanctum sanctorum) and excavation is likely to start south of Ram Chabutra (an erected platform opposite the garbha griha). The excavation job will be carried out under especially erected tents within the disputed premises and there are indications that the team could go ahead on a 4 x 4 square metre piece of land at one time after forming the grid. A coordination committee has been formed by the local administration with ASI members to ensure there’s no hitch in carrying out the job and also to keep abreast with plans of the excavation team. ‘‘The committee will be meeting tomorrow to give final shape to the excavation work plan. There could be some mid-course corrections in the plan finalised by us and we will also have to take that change of schedule in mind,’’ said R M Srivastava, Faizabad commissioner. The High Court OSD, Narendra Kumar, has been informed by the ASI team about the action plan and he is supposed to relay the information to all parties in cases related to the Ayodhya issue. This will allow them to be there in person or send nominees to supervise the excavation job. ‘‘There were 14 representatives of different parties on the issue when the GPR survey was undertaken,’’ Srivastava said. There’s already opposition, though on a subdued tone, to the dig. ‘‘I will boycott the excavation because there’s no meaning attending these. What happened to the earlier surveys? At least, we have the right to know,’’ questioned Hashim Ansari, one of the main litigants in the pending title suit on the ownership of the disputed place. Ansari maintained he had no ‘‘faith’’ in the ASI team entrusted the excavation job. Preparations are underway on a large scale to ensure that the job is completed without any trouble. Photo identity cards have been issued to over 50 labour hands who will help the ASI in the dig. They were kept waiting for most part of the day outside the winding approach to the makeshift temple.
