Puri: Two out of eight spokes of the Nilachakra- the metal wheel atop Sri Mandir-the 12th century shrine in Odisha’s holy town Puri have weakened.

The matter came to light after its inspection today by a team of experts led by Sri Mandir Core Committee Chairman A P Gupta.

The team members Padmalochan Mohapatra, Dharmaprasad Mishra, Central Building Research Institute (CBRI)’s principal scientist Achal Mittal, Archaeological Survey of India (ASI)’s Chittaranjan Das, General Electrical Department (GED) officials and Deputy Chief Administrator of Sri Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) Arvind Agarwal climbed up the scaffolding specially erected for the purpose to reach the temple top for inspection.

Similarly, eight out of the 12 spokes of the lightning arrestor affixed on the Anlabedha have been uprooted and also the earthing was found to be weak by the team during its inspection.

However, all these will be repaired and affixed.

“The earthing conductor has been found to be ok on examination but its connection with the Nilachakra has got loosened and they are saying there is some problem. The expert team will get it repaired. Only four out of the 12 spokes of the lightning arrestor currently are in place, the remaining eight are damaged, these will be replaced,” informed Puri Collector and Deputy Chief Administrator of SJTA.

The team members also examined the Anlabedha, Padma Pakhuda, Kalasa and other sections of the dome of the shrine.