KATHMANDU: As the Mahashivaratri, the festival dedicated to lord Shiva, inches closer, the painting of the monuments—Shivalayas, temples, lingums, chaityas, statues and maths—within the premises of the Pashupatinath Temple, are going on a war-footing. The painting will be completed within a week, ahead of the Mahashivaratri festival to be held on February 12.

Pashupatinath area boosts of more than 500 such monuments, which had not been painted for the last five years. And the old paint had long peeled off.

"Rs 1 million has been allocated for the painting," said Sushil Nahata, member-secretary of the Pashupati Area Development Trust (PADT), which falls under the UNESCO world heritage list. "Painting started four days ago and will be completed within a week," he said. There are 40 persons employed on a daily basis to clean the walls of the monuments and paint them.

Among 500 monuments, 81 temples and maths in the core area of Pashupatinath are most important and sensitive, said Bhola Prasad Sitaula of PADT.