The supreme court has appointed a five-member expert team to assess the value of the wealth in the cellars of the Sree Padmanabha Swamy temple. The panel is headed by National Museum Institute Vice Chancellor C V Ananda Bose and the other members of the committee are National Museum Archeology Protection Department head M V Nair, temple executive officer V K Harikumar, Archeological Survey of India representative B V Raja and Reserve Bank of India representative Vikas Sharma.

The committee will also review work already been done by the earlier seven-member committee which had opened inner chambers and inventoried the precious articles of great intrinsic and heritage value locked up in the underground vaults. The B vault is yet to be opened. After receiving a report from the Committee, the Supreme Court will take a decision on whether to open or not the vault B. CV Ananda Bose told reporters that a detailed scientific plan would be put in place to estimate the value of the wealth in the vaults. The panel will also submit a detailed report on how to protect the wealth. When asked about opening of the 'B' vault, he didn't confirm whether the vault will be opened or not.

The police, which is probing into the mysterious fire accident near temple complex that took place on Sunday evening, is still grappling in the dark. Though experts from the electricity and forensic departments inspected the area on Monday, the exact reason for the mishap still remains a mystery.
Meanwhile, officials of the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) who inspected the spot on Monday morning said there was no electric connection in the stall and ruled out the possibility of an electrical short circuit causing the fire.