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Chandigarh: HC seeks clarity on UNESCO status amid Capitol Complex construction row
The development comes in the backdrop of Supreme Court on Friday staying high court’s November 29 order on construction of a verandah outside the chief justice’s court, on its premises. The apex court had acted on the plea from the Chandigarh administration, which argued that if the HC order was implemented without UNESCO approval, it may lead to losing the World Heritage site tag.
The Punjab and Haryana high court has asked Chandigarh administration to produce before the court the terms and conditions subject to which the high court’s original building was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Besides, the administration has been told to provide documents about the legal status of the Chandigarh Heritage Committee and the Le Corbusier Foundation, Paris.
The development comes in the backdrop of Supreme Court on Friday staying high court’s November 29 order on construction of a verandah outside the chief justice’s court, on its premises. The apex court had acted on the plea from the Chandigarh administration, which argued that if the HC order was implemented without UNESCO approval, it may lead to losing the World Heritage site tag.
2023 public interest litigation
The record has been sought by the high court while hearing a 2023 public interest litigation (PIL) filed by Vinod Dhaterwal, an office-bearer of the high court employees’ association, demanding infrastructure development of the HC complex in the wake of increasing traffic congestion, space crunch and implementation of a holistic development plan. The plan, conceptualised more than a decade back, envisages setting up of multi-storey buildings to cater to the requirement of additional space at the high court complex. However, the plan had to be put on hold as the Capitol Complex was declared a World Heritage site in 2016.
Lawyers associated with the case said clarity on the legal status of heritage committee and terms and conditions of UNESCO would help in examining the case of implementation of holistic development plan of the high court, which is on hold.
The HC building is part of the Capitol Complex, designed by acclaimed French architect Le Corbusier, and was designated a World Heritage site in 2016. Spread over more than 100 acres in Sector 1, the complex is the prime manifestation of Chandigarh’s architecture, with the Shivalik hills in the backdrop making the sight more serene and grand. The buildings at the Capitol Complex include the Open Hand monument, Punjab and Haryana High Court, Tower of Shadows, Geometric Hill, the legislative assembly, and the secretariat. Construction at a heritage site is prohibited without approval from the UNESCO World Heritage Committee.
After this status was accorded, UT had to put on hold various projects, as in 2023 UNESCO suspended three major projects at the Capitol complex recording that it is impacting the Overall Universal Value (OUV) of the UNESCO site. The projects include a plan to set up martyrs monuments, construction of courtrooms, an underground multi-level parking project, and a project of AC chiller plants.
