Moat in Vellore Fort filling up fast
The Hindu
ASI officials lock entry gates, prevent visitors from walking on parapet wall
The moat in the 16th Century Vellore Fort is filling up fast. Visitors have been prohibited from walking on the parapet wall of the fort for safety reasons as the pathway on the wall has become slippery due to continuous rain. More importantly, the rise in water level in the moat has made the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) officials lock the two entry gates to prevent visitors from walking on the wall as they might slip into the moat.
During normal days, officials said, visitors used to sit on the wall to get a better view of the town. Some of them even fish in the water of the moat. “The building technique of the Vijayanagara kings is evident from the fact that there has never been any seepage into the Fort complex from the moat all these years,” M. Varadaraj Suresh, Archaeological Officer (AO), ASI (Vellore), told The Hindu.
Constructed as part of the Fort complex, which is a protected monument and maintained by the ASI, the moat runs over three kilometres around the fort with an average depth of 29 feet. The depth of the moat varies due its rocky bed, especially on its northern side. Excess rainwater getting collected in the moat not only helps recharge groundwater in the drought-hit town but also aids in fishing activity in the moat which can be resumed during summer.