Indian Express 31.08.2009
Drive initiated to identify heritage structures in city
The Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) has initiated a drive to identify the old heritage monuments in the city so that extra care is taken for their preservation and people visiting the city get to know more about their history.
Several old heritage buildings housing government offices are in a deplorable state.
Surat is a historic city. Before the arrival of the British, the Dutch and the Portuguese had established their business here. The East India Company had set up its office in Surat in 1612.
Many heritage buildings in Surat date back to the Colonial and the Mughal era, but they are in a bad condition due to lack of proper care.
The Surat Municipal Corporation main office is run in a Mughal Sarai building — built by Mughal Emperor Shahjahan for the Haj pilgrims. A year ago, a wall and a passage had collapsed in this building.
The Surat Fort, which was built by Mohammed Tughluq on the banks of the Tapi, houses many government offices. The Dutch House, the Portuguese and the Dutch cemeteries, as also the English Factory, are in a bad condition. Worse still, the historic Gopi talao in Surat is used as a public toilet by people from the neighbouring areas.
Recently, the Municipal Corporation undertook a project to identify the heritage structures in the city. Over 2,800 heritage buildings have been identified till date and work is on the verge of completion. A book on these heritage buildings along with photographs and their history will also be published
B S Gohil, Executive Engineer, Public Works Department, Surat, said: “At present, many historic buildings are occupied by government offices. We carry out repair work whenever required, but it is difficult to take care of these buildings properly, due to the presence of government offices.”
He added: “The offices should be shifted to other places and special care should be taken for the preservation of these heritage buildings.”
Municipal Commissioner S Aparna said: “Our main office functions from the Mughal Sarai building, but we do take care of the premises regularly and undertake repair work whenever required. We have sealed off several portions of the buildings and prevented entry and exit at those points, due to safety reasons.”
