Belgaum, September 16, 2013: An ancient idol of Bhagwan Parshwanath, the 23rd Jain Tirthankar, was found during an excavation work undertaken for laying cable lines by a private mobile service provider in Hindalga village near here on Sunday.

The three-and-half feet tall idol, beautifully sculpted on a grey stone with a seven-headed snake spread over the head of the deity is of great archaeological significance considering the fact that there are good number of Jain temples, including the Kamal Bastis in historic Belgaum Fort and Halshi (a minor capital of the Kadambas) of Khanapur taluk in Belgaum district. The deity has inscriptions believed to be in Modi language below its feet and at the base of the idol. One of the hoods of the snake has minor damage, while the rest was intact.

Subsequently, Belgaum South MLA Sanjay B. Patil visited the spot along with Deputy Commissioner N. Jayaram. Large number of Jain devotees from Hindalga and Belgaum also rushed to the spot to get a glimpse of the idol.

The idol would be sent to the Department of Archaeology for further study, Mr. Jayaram said.

Source: The Hindu, September