Conservation Efforts to Restore Pothimala as a National Heritage Monument

The modern journey to preserve Pothimala, one of Punjab’s most historically significant yet endangered Sikh heritage sites, began in earnest when Haresh Singh Sodhi returned to the ancestral seat in 1980. A visiting American writer first alerted him to the extraordinary artistic and cultural value of the murals that adorned the building. Unsure which government institution could intervene, he wrote to M.S. Randhawa, then Chairman of the Punjab Lalit Kala Akademi.

Randhawa—an eminent art historian and connoisseur—was so impressed by the murals that he compared them to the world-renowned paintings of the Rang Mahal at Chamba, describing them as rare composite art that harmonised Sikh, Hindu, and Muslim motifs. He forwarded his assessment to the Director of the National Museum, who immediately dispatched a chemical expert to Guru Har Sahai. The expert’s report became the foundation for a formal recommendation to the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).

The National Museum’s evaluation was unequivocal:

the murals were of exceptional technological and stylistic importance,
the building was structurally distressed,
and the site must be preserved in situ, as removing the murals to a museum was neither feasible nor desirable.

Despite strong advocacy—including letters from senior ASI officials and interventions from high-ranking dignitaries such as the Punjab Governor Aminuddin Khan and Director General of Police J.F. Ribeiro—the property received no meaningful conservation action for more than sixteen years. With each monsoon, sections of the structure collapsed; intricately decorated false ceilings rotted; and seepage devastated wooden beams and traditional kadi-shahteer roofs. Although officials repeatedly acknowledged the building’s heritage value, bureaucratic delays, acquisition debates and administrative inertia stalled its recognition even as a local monument, let alone a national one.

ASI’s Renewed Restoration Initiative

In a significant breakthrough, the Central Government eventually approved a plan for the restoration and preservation of this 250-year-old building and its murals. A high-level ASI team from the Chandigarh Circle, led by Superintendent Archaeologist V.C. Sharma, conducted a comprehensive physical examination involving specialists from engineering, chemistry, documentation, and architectural wings.

The team’s findings reaffirmed the building’s importance and deterioration. Sharma emphasised that the site qualifies as a national monument, and confirmed that a formal conservation note would precede the preparation of the funding estimate. He further noted that the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) had shown active interest in safeguarding the monument for posterity.

An earlier ASI survey had already recommended restoration, and the Centre finally initiated action based on that report. Experts estimated that, with sustained funding and administrative alignment, the conservation work could be completed within two years.

Historical Significance of Pothimala

The Pothimala complex carries profound spiritual and cultural importance. The term “Pothi-Mala” refers to the pothi (holy book) and the mala (rosary) associated with Guru Nanak Dev Ji. The site itself was built in 1705 by Guru Jiwan Mal, a direct descendant of Guru Ram Das, who was revered as Guru by large segments of the Sodhi clan. This dual association with both Guru Nanak and Guru Ram Das imbues the estate with a layered heritage, making its conservation a matter of national and international cultural stewardship.

The custodianship of the estate rested with Haresh Singh Sodhi, who has passed the Gurgaddi (seat of Guruship) to his son Yuvraj Singh Sodhi, ensuring continuity of lineage and traditions even as the physical structure struggles against time.

Haresh Singh Sodhi has repeatedly expressed concern that if restoration does not occur promptly, a monument of global importance may vanish. He noted that the ASI’s initial attempt to intervene in 1980 did not materialise into preservation, and decades of neglect have placed the structure at existential risk.

A Heritage on the Brink

Pothimala stands today as a symbol of both remarkable artistic legacy and pressing conservation urgency. Though the PMO has acknowledged the need for restoration, years of administrative delay have allowed structural damage to escalate. Without sustained, coordinated effort, the murals—described as among India’s finest examples of syncretic art—and the building itself risk devolving into irrecoverable ruin.

Yet the renewed initiative by the Centre and the ASI gives cautious optimism that Pothimala may finally receive the recognition and protection it deserves as a national monument of immense historical, spiritual, and artistic significance.