The State Archaeology department has begun cleaning work at the Tipu Sultan fort at Feroke in Kozhikode district even as leaders of a local monument protection committee are planning to file a contempt of court petition in the Kerala High Court against the “official indifference” in preserving it.
The cleaning work began on Monday ahead of taking up large-scale excavation in the area in a bid to conserve the remnants left behind by the 18th century Mysore ruler. According to K. Krishnaraj of the department, the Archaeological Survey of India has given licence till September this year to carry out the work. “Right now the wilderness and the bushes around the structure are being cleaned. Large-scale excavation will begin by April,” he said.
