Pathra Group of Temples – History

Pathra Group of Temples – History

Pathra was once an important gateway to the Tamralipta (now Tamluk), a flourishing port town during the golden era of Gupta period. Pathra was an important religious centre for Hindus, Jains and Buddhists from 8^th century to 12^th century CE. An idol of Vishnu Lokeshwar was excavated in this village in October 1961 revealed both Hindu and Buddhist influences, indicating that practitioners of both religions frequented Pathra.

Pathra once again came into prominence in 1732 CE, when Alivardi Khan, Nawab of Bengal appointed Bidyananda Ghoshal as the revenue collector of Ratnachawk Pargana. He constructed several temples in Pathra by utilizing the royal fund without any permission. He made Pathra a centre for Hindu pilgrimage. The nawab was not pleased with his works. He arrested Bidyananda Ghoshal for misusing the royal fund and sentenced him to death.

It is said that an elephant was brought to crush the head of Bidyananda Ghoshal, but the elephant refused to do so. The village got its name from this incident (Pathra from 'Paa-Utra' meaning survived from crushing due to withdrawal of elephant's foot). The Nawab was so overwhelmed with this incident, he pardoned him instantly and made him Subedar (revenue collector & administrator) of Ratanchawk Pargana and honoured him with the title Musamadar.

The Ghoshal family changed their surname to Majumdar after this incident and continued building temples till the end of the 18^th century CE. Majumdar is said to have been derived from the word Musamadar. Later Bandopadhyay and Mukhopadhyay families were emerged from the original Zamindar (feudal lord) family and they also started constructing temples in Pathra.

Most of the temples in Pathra, primarily the cluster along the river, were built by Bidyananda Ghosal and his descendants. The decline started as the rich families shifted their base from the village and ignorant local residents started vandalizing the temples. Many of the structures were reduced to rubble.

Yeasin Pathan, a local Muslim resident of Pathra devoted his life for protecting the temples in Pathra. He formed an NGO, the Pathra Archaeological Preservation Committee (PAPC) in 1990 incorporating both Hindu and Muslim members which played an important role in strengthening the bond between these communities.

His efforts and lifelong struggle to save the temples were recognized by several awards including the Kabir Award for communal harmony from the President of India, in the year 2002. The Archaeological Survey of India has taken charge of 28 temples and has repaired 18 temples. Pathra Archeological Preservation Committee, a non-government organization, also looks after the structures.