Matter of will

Public will and government cooperation are vital for the success of any conservation effort, says KAUSALYA SANTHANAM, concluding her two-part article on heritage buildings in Chennai.

CONSERVATION MEANS much more than saving heritage buildings from the hammer. How well are the valuable structures repaired and maintained? Mr. P. T. Krishnan, convener of the Tamil Nadu Chapter of INTACH (Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage) points out that the basic understanding that conservation is a different field from civil engineering is absent in Chennai. Modern day techniques are used by the PWD for repairing old buildings as also new materials that are not compatible with the way the buildings were constructed. You have to understand the technology of the times they were built in; otherwise you damage them badly, he states.

Since every city has layers of history - pre-colonial, colonial and modern - they can co-exist for that is what makes a city vibrant. It is only when they begin to interfere with one another, we should take note. "For example, when signboards are placed over old, gracious facades such as the Agurchand Mansions or the Kapaleeswarar temple gopuram has a multistoreyed structure beside it," he adds.

"Not having a Heritage Act is definitely a disadvantage," says architect Ms. Tara Murali. "It results in delay in the process of conservation and it also leads to the destruction of old buildings as people think the Act is going to come soon and they want to exploit the value of the land. Conservation and preservation should be part of a total planning process; we should have a holistic approach whereas now it is skewed. We have to take cultural and social needs into consideration. We have to first identify the buildings and open spaces we need to preserve and this has to be integrated with the planning process. There has to be a link between planning and our daily lives such as the traffic.

"Moreover, people feel, in the case of conservation, they will lose out financially. The Heritage Act will remedy that. The transfer of developmental rights will allow the compensation for any economic loss that may arise in underutilisation of buildability in any plot.

"The DGP building is an isolated example in the area of conservation," adds Ms. Tara Murali. "Now people in the Government have realised the value of old buildings. But it is used only by the Police. In order to make the public aware of the importance of conservation, we can conserve one building successfully so that the public uses it and will be able to relate to history. If the Victoria Public Hall, for instance, is accessed by the public, it will make a great difference in creating awareness. Most countries make conservation a part of the education process. Even if a building is in ruins, conducted tours are arranged and children are taught the value of their heritage."

All the NGOs and the Government should come together on this issue, she feels. But it is low on the list of priorities of the Government. They feel a new building speaks better of their work. And this leads to a decision to bring down a structure like the DGP building and construct a new one in its place as a gesture to the Police. This is true of other buildings as well.

There is awareness about our heritage among the public, says Ms. Murali. "When INTACH had a photo exhibition on the beach, we found that from the educated person to the sundal boy, everyone was interested. In terms of emotion, the educated don't have an edge over the others. People feel helpless and as in everything else, a sense that they cannot do anything about it."

"Our city has a good stock of heritage structures. If we do not acknowledge it, it will be too late," feels architect Sujatha Shankar. Over the generations, we seem to have lost our sense of aesthetics in our built environment. Repairs should be done in a sensitive way. In the Guindy Engineering College, the compound wall has been "done up" taking away the essence. It is important not only to preserve the building but also its precincts; this will send out the right message, she says. The First Line Beach along the Marina is second to none. But how well do we maintain it? Old buildings are not painted properly. The concept now is to drape the whole structure in glass.

In Delhi, memorials to leaders have been assigned a special place whereas here the widest part of the beach has been appropriated for the purpose. As for the statues on the beach front, statues per se are not bad as they represent a value system and a certain period. But we can't have them multiplied many times over - is it the only form of art? she asks.

"Basically, we lack pride in our city unlike the citizens of Mumbai and Calcutta," says Dr. A. Srivathsan of the School of Architecture and Planning . "Chennaiites have no sense of identification with their city. It was not always so. When the Government at the turn of the century wanted to transfer the capital of the Presidency from Madras to Bangalore (military base) and Ooty (administration), there was such a hue and cry. The 1880's to 1930's was the best time the city had, the period when the best buildings and spaces were created. The Marina was developed and so were people's parks. Big railway stations were built. After the 1940s, we lost sight of the city as an entity. Even in the 1950s and 1960s, though you may dislike the quality of the architecture, distinctive structures came up - the LIC and the Ezhilagam. In the post-Independence period we have not done anything in the sphere of providing public spaces - spaces for people without a purpose except the Guindy Sanctuary." Dr. Srivathsan views the statues on the beach and the Valluvar Kottam favourably. "These icons - Avvaiyar, G. U. Pope, Thiruvalluvar - represent regional culture. Where else can regionalism find expression? To me they don't mar the beach, it is a different kind of a beach, that's all." But all the corporates want to invest mainly around the Roundtana and the Gandhi Statue, in what is visible. Citizens of Chennai know very little about its history and the Government doesn't have a clue, he says.

When we talk of history, we immediately think of that magnificent building, the Government Museum, a monumental symbol of neglect. The Museum will celebrate its 150th birthday soon. As in all other cases, lack of funds is cited as the reason for not repairing it. But it belongs to the Archaeological Survey of India and they should take it up, states Mr. R. Kannan, Commissioner for Museums. He has taken efforts to clean up the premises including ensuring that tourists do not cook, wash and hang their clothes to dry in the garden. The priceless bronzes have been enclosed in acrylic cases and work is going on in the creation of a virtual museum. "We have introduced fibre optics in the Art Gallery - a first in the country," he says. "Seminars and lectures are held regularly and our conservation laboratory is unique." He agrees the building needs restoration and the ASI should take it up.

Educating the young on not just national history but the history of the State, district and locality is vital for the future of conservation, stress the activists. It should be made a compulsory part of their education.

Public will and Government effort are both needed for conservation efforts. Many heritage buildings stand on prime land where every inch means big money. Before the onslaught of greed, they may crumble. What will be lost is our history which gives us our identity. And without an identity, what are we?

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