Assyrian Umra (Mar Thuma) Church of Verin Dvin being restored
Restoration works for the Assyrian Umra (Mar Thuma) church in the village of Verin Dvin, Ararat Province, are planned to commence following the design phase. This was announced by Zhanna Andreasyan, Minister of Education, Science, Culture, and Sport, during a Q&A session with the Government in the National Assembly.
According to her, the restoration of the church is included among the Ministry’s priorities. The development of scientific-design documentation for the reinforcement, renovation, and restoration of the church has already been commissioned through a tender process. For this purpose, 6 million AMD has been allocated from the state budget.
The Minister noted that the design work will be carried out this year, after which the construction phase will begin. The project must be discussed in the scientific-methodological council attached to the Ministry, and the progress of the works will be supervised by a professional council.
Andreasyan also informed that state allocations for the restoration of monuments have increased in recent years. According to her, last year more than 1.3 billion AMD was directed toward this purpose, enabling work to be carried out on about four dozen monuments within a single year.
The Minister emphasized that the 2023–2027 strategy for the protection and development of culture pays special attention to the preservation of monuments of national minorities. According to her, restoration works are already being carried out on a number of monuments belonging to this heritage, with priority given to the most endangered structures.
