C Shivakumar
Chennai:
Three years after the formation of Heritage Conservation
Committee, the first draft list of 79 heritage sites is likely to be notified
by the state government by next month.
A Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority official told
Express that the Heritage Conservation Committee has till now collected the
details of 79 sites and this has been cleared by the authority meeting
conducted last month.
The list will now will taken up for public consultation by
the end of this month before being sent in for notification before the
government.
He said that the heritage conservation committee has
identified 500 sites and till now details have been collected about 79 sites.
“It is a laborious work as all these sites require minute details,” the
official said. He said the second and third list would also be prepared soon.
Interestingly, the authorities has also recommended to the government seeking
extension of the tenure of non-official members of the Heritage Conservation
Committee and reappoint them for another term of three years.
Chennai has a number of Heritage Buildings which need to be
conserved. Development
Regulations of Chennai Metropolitan Area form part of the
Second Master Plan that provide for conservation of Heritage Buildings through
regulatory process. Interestingly, as per the regulations, any person who wants
to make additions, alterations, repairs, renovation , or demolish the whole or
any part of the listed Heritage Buildings or precincts have to obtain prior
written permission of the Member-Secretary, CMDA as provided in the Development
Regulations.
The broad criterion for listing the Heritage
Buildings/Precincts.
(i) Historical
a. Date / Period of construction;
This criteria may ensure that the building / precincts age
is given due
consideration in determining historic significance
b. Trends exhibited by the building;
The building or a precinct may reflect a particular social,
economic, political or
cultural pattern, characteristic of the local settlement
area.
c. Events associated with;
A building or structure may be directly linked to an event
of local, regional, or
national significance or a noteworthy historical event.
d. Persons associated with;
Building or precincts may be linked to a notable person,
group, and institution and
has historical significance.
(ii) Architectural
a. Design;
The building may be significant because of its excellence
artistic merits, or
uniqueness of its design, compositions, craftsmanship or
details. It includes
decoration, colour, texture, massing notable proportion.
b. Style;
The building may exhibit features of a particular
architecture style, period of
construction (style compared to others of its particular
architecture style)
c. Designer / Builder;
The building might have been designed by an Architect /
Engineer or other design
professional or constructed by a builder whose work is
local, regional or national
importance.
d. Physical conditions;
The condition of the structure may be superior or it may
require minor structural
repair, or extensive repair, or it may be in a dilapidated
condition.
e. Design Integrity;
In a heritage building if alterations had already been
carried out, then its
repairable nature and worthiness to conserve.
(iii)Cultural
a. Community context;
For sentimental / symbolic reasons, the building / precincts
might have become
significant part of community identity.
Some of the historic buildings:
Memorial Hall – 1860
(Pix)
As thanks giving to God for
saving Madras from the Revolt of 1857
Designed by Colonel George
Winscom and modified by Col. Horsley
Classical style with Greek
Overtones. Resembles temples in Greece. It is purer in
form.
Traces of deterioration. Now
used for film shootings and sales. Hall if maintained well can be used for
social gathering and conducting Lectures.
Madras Museum - 1862
To Preserve Geological specimen and archaeological artifacts
Designed by Herny Irwin in Indo scenic style
It is maintained well but several additions have taken
place. The front view remains
untouched.
Public works Department 1865
Robert F. Chisholm
Pure Saracenic style. The front façade has
not changed but additions have
spoilt the beauty of the building.
Regular maintenance can prolong the life
of the building.
Board of Revenue
– 1768
The first building
was constructed in by Paul Benfield
Later additions
were done in 1870. by Robert F Chisholm
It has a mixture of
tropical Gothic and Indo Saracenic style.
Consist of two
blocks Humayan Mahal and Khalsa Mahal
Post and Telegraph office – 1884
Designed by Robert F. Chisholm
Saracenic style with projecting eaves in stone as in
Bijapur. Arches and columns as in Gujarat.
Inspite of fire accident it still remained to be a
landmark. Though in use it needs proper
maintenance by regular inspection.
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