WOULD WEDDING bells finally stop ringing inside Qaiserbagh Baradari to preserve its exquisite heritage character? Seems unlikely, as more than a year after it was mooted, the proposal to shift marriage ceremonies to an alternative venue within the vicinity of Baradari continues to be in a limbo.
Like in the past, the meeting called by Commissioner RK Mittal on Thursday to review the progress in the matter, remained inconclusive. Here it is pertinent to mention that a plan to this effect was first discussed and agreed upon by the members of the Anjuman-e-Hind Awadh (AHA) in their meeting with Mittal on August 3, 2005.
The idea was to build an extension of the Baradari on a vacant piece of land behind the Amir-ud-daula Library. The blue-blooded scions of the Anjuman, were subsequently asked by the Commissioner to submit a drawing of the proposed building, blending its design with the region’s architecture and get it approved from the LDA by August 31, the same year. The project also envisages setting up of a picture gallery, an exhibition hall and a cafeteria on the ground floor of the Amir-ud-daula Library building.
But more than a year after the decision, the AHA office-bearers reportedly complied with the order, they have been asked to draft the building plan fresh and present it to LDA. “Once they (the AHA) submit the new draft, we would send it for approval to the government and seek a no objection certificate from the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) before sanctioning it,” said an LDA official, who looks after the area.
{{/usCountry}}But more than a year after the decision, the AHA office-bearers reportedly complied with the order, they have been asked to draft the building plan fresh and present it to LDA. “Once they (the AHA) submit the new draft, we would send it for approval to the government and seek a no objection certificate from the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) before sanctioning it,” said an LDA official, who looks after the area.
{{/usCountry}}Since preserving the city’s heritage has never been a priority with the government and the ASI is known to take its own sweet time in granting the requisite NOC, the proposed venture, in all probability, is unlikely to get past the drawing board stage. “The authorities only seem interested in putting a stop on marriage ceremonies inside the Baradari. If they are genuinely concerned about preserving the heritage why don’t they get the encroachments and illegal constructions removed from the area,” said an AHA member requesting anonymity. We have raised this issue in each and every meeting that has been held in this connection. But no follow up action was ever taken either by the LDA or administration authorities, he added.