Heritage panel pulls up PWD over unauthorised changes at Grade-II CTO building

In a notice issued to the chief architect of the state PWD, the heritage committee has asked the department to produce the original approvals for the work. Failing that, it has directed the PWD to immediately halt the renovation and seek fresh permissions before proceeding further

MUMBAI: The Mumbai Heritage Conservation Committee (MHCC) has pulled up the state Public Works Department (PWD) over the ongoing renovation of the 19th-century Central Telegraph Office (CTO), a Grade-II heritage building in Fort, alleging that key alterations being carried out at the landmark were never approved and violate heritage conservation norms.

Mumbai, India - July 21, 2026:Aluminum window frame installed CTO at Fort, in Mumbai, India, on Tuesday, July 21, 2026. (Photo by Anshuman Poyrekar/Hindustan Times) (Anshuman Poyrekar/HT Photo)

In a notice issued to the chief architect of the state PWD, the heritage committee has asked the department to produce the original approvals for the work. Failing that, it has directed the PWD to immediately halt the renovation and seek fresh permissions before proceeding further.

At the heart of the dispute are the installation of lift shafts and the replacement of the building’s original heritage windows with wooden frames and aluminium sliding windows, changes the committee said were never sanctioned. The CTO is a protected heritage structure, where any renovation requires prior approval from the MHCC. While the PWD has been carrying out the restoration citing an approval granted in 2017, the committee said the present work goes beyond what had been permitted.

“The committee specifically stated that it had never permitted the lifts and had clearly mentioned ‘existing wooden windows shall be retained and restored to the maximum extent possible and, wherever replacement becomes unavoidable, new wooden windows replicating the original design, profile, proportions, material, and detailing shall be provided’,” the notice reads.

Complaints trigger inspection

The alleged violations came to light after conservation architects complained about visible alterations to the landmark building in the Fort heritage precinct. Following the complaints, members of the heritage committee inspected the site and found contemporary aluminium framed windows replacing the original timber framed ones.

Conservation architect Pankaj Joshi said the changes have altered the building’s historic character and undermine Mumbai’s commitments to preserve its World Heritage precinct.

“They have replaced the heritage timber window frames with aluminum window frames, clearly in contravention to the conservation norms to maintain the original facade of the heritage building. The entire ground floor elevation has changed, damaging the entire external facade which is a violation of the Outstanding Universal Value of the building, giving a downgraded look to this Grade II listed site in Mumbai and building in a listed World Heritage Site,” observed Joshi, also principal director of Urban Centre, Mumbai.

The CTO building, located opposite the Bombay High Court and flanked by Flora Fountain and the Parsi Bhika Behram Well, earlier belonged to the Union ministry of telecommunications and has now been taken up by the PWD for renovation.

Joshi, a former member of Mumbai’s heritage committee, said the alterations could have wider implications for Mumbai’s World Heritage status.

“This is in complete violation of the commitments made to Unesco to conserve heritage sites. Such interventions damage the cultural value of the structure and could even invite strictures from the World Heritage body,” he said. “The city must be committed to conserving heritage with utmost care and sensitivity,” added Joshi, who has sent a protest message to the BMC’s heritage cell demanding action.

PWD promises action

When contacted, PWD officials said they were yet to receive a copy of the notice. “There were issues of leakages and there might have been some changes made to deal with it. But, we shall now ensure that necessary corrective action is taken,” a senior PWD official stated.

The MHCC is currently chaired by retired IAS officer Praveen Pardeshi and comprises experts including the director of the museum, the principal of Sir JJ College of Architecture and conservation architects. The committee is the statutory authority responsible for scrutinising and approving alterations to Mumbai’s listed heritage structures.