The Indonesian government is targeting the restoration of 218 ancillary temples at the Prambanan Temple Complex in Sleman, DI Yogyakarta, to be completed within the next three years.
An ancillary temple is a smaller, complementary structure that surrounds the main temple or shrine within a temple complex.
The Head of the Museum and Cultural Heritage, Indira Estiyanti Nurjadin, stated that the project’s initial plan was to complete the restoration within 10 years. However, following discussions between Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Indonesian government is now aiming to complete the restoration of all 218 remaining ancillary temples before 2029.
“What was planned at the beginning was that this project would be completed in 10 years. But perhaps because he was excited, the President also announced and perhaps spoke together with PM Modi that he would try to complete all the buildings that had not been built before 2029,” Nurjadin said on Wednesday, the 8th of July.
Moreover, Maya Watono, President Director of PT Aviasi Pariwisata Indonesia (Persero), or InJourney, stated that Subianto’s visit with Modi on Wednesday marked the beginning of the revitalisation and conservation project for the Prambanan Temple Complex.
“This is a collaborative heritage partnership with India, where we will restore these temples. We hope to add more than 200 temples to Prambanan within the next three to five years. This will create an incredibly large temple complex,” Watono said.
Furthermore, according to Watono, the visit also opens up significant opportunities for the development of Indonesia’s tourism sector, particularly in the Prambanan Temple area, which is home to the largest Hindu temple in Indonesia and one of the largest in Southeast Asia.
“We have enormous potential to develop Prambanan as a destination for spiritual and cultural heritage tourism,” she added.
The collaboration, titled Indonesia India Collaborative Culture Heritage Conservation, was explained by the Minister of Culture of the Republic of Indonesia, Fadli Zon, while accompanying Subianto during Modi’s state visit to the Prambanan Temple Complex in Sleman, Yogyakarta, on Wednesday, the 8th of July.
This initiative forms part of the strengthening of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between Indonesia and India, as outlined in the Letter of Intent for the Conservation and Restoration of the Prambanan Temple Complex. The Letter of Intent serves as the foundation for enhancing Indonesia–India collaboration in the conservation and restoration of the Prambanan Temple Complex.