CHENNAI CORPORATION: Panel for restoration of heritage buildings

By G Saravanan
Published in The New Indian Express, Chennai, on July 1, 2010:

CHENNAI: With a view to convince the public over the quality of restoration work being undertaken on its historic buildings, the Corporation on Wednesday appointed a three-member committee to look into the beautification and restoration of the historic Ripon Building and Victoria Public Hall.

According to sources, the decision to appoint a panel was necessitated after the officials monitoring the restoration process at Ripon Building recently found that the pace of the work was not to the satisfactory level. The civic body initiated this move to ensure that the renovation of these heritage buildings, carried out at a cost of about Rs. 9.5 crore was executed in a transparent and flawless manner.

The committee comprises representatives from Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) and State Highways Department. The bills raised by the contractor would be passed by the committee, only if the supervising officials and the committee members were satisfied with the quality of the work executed.

Ever since the restoration project under the Jawaharlal Nehru Urban Renewal Mission had started, commissioner Rajesh Lakhoni had been reviewing its progress.