HERITAGE revisited

HERITAGE revisited
INTACH Takes Another Look At The List Of Heritage Buildings
Deepa Bhasthi | TNN

Bangalore: Beyond the glass facades of Bangalore are lesser-known treasures. In quiet lanes with silent houses is a rich history of days long gone by. Heritage buildings abound; some in use, several abandoned, a dangerously large number of them in near ruins.
According to an old list, there are some 750-800 heritage buildings in the city. The list compiled by the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) includes public buildings, monuments, private houses and other structures. The buildings are classified under various sections, depending on importance and antiquity. The decade-old list is being revised. INTACH’s new list will determine how many buildings on the old list still exist. H R Prathibha, convener of its Bangalore chapter, said this list could be ready by year-end. “The list will be useful to append to the Karnataka Town and Country Plan Act, 1961 which is used to extend protection to heritage buildings. The new list will also classify buildings under various sections for funding and conservation purposes,” she said. INTACH, an NGO involved in conservation and restoration of heritage buildings, has a few restoration projects in Mysore on the cards. In the city, several buildi n g s have been given a facelift using new techniques. Bangalore has several buildings that have been witness to the changing face of the city (see box). In addition, there are villas and offices, school buildings, stray structures tucked away, some down a narrow lane on the way to hotels, rundown theatres, etc. A number of houses and other nameless buildings, identified by a mere number, are on the list too.
The list will chronicle how many heritage buildings are left in the city. The final tally may not be too good, fear conservationists. Modernity might just have ended several more stories that the buildings were telling, half-way through.
WHAT IS A HERITAGE BUILDING?
A building possessing architectural, aesthetic, historic or cultural values is declared a heritage building by the planning authority/heritage conservation committee or any other competent authority in whose jurisdiction it’s situated. These require preservation and conservation for historical, architectural, environmental or ecological purposes.
HERITAGE STRUCTURES IN BANGALORE
Vidhana Soudha Attara Kacheri Sheshadri Iyer Memorial Hall Archaeological museum, Kasturba Road Corporation Building Carlton House Government Law College Bangalore University Central College campus buildings Kumara Krupa Mayo Hall and municipal offices, Residency Road