Another heritage walk site after Fort: Mumbai civic body is beautifying Girgaum

The Opera House, Prarthana Samaj Hall, Parsi Gate, Banganga Tank and Khotachiwadi are among the monuments chosen for the heritage walk.

To showcase Mumbai’s glorious past, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) plans to beautify areas in and around prominent heritage precincts in Girgaum for a heritage walk.

Khotachiwadi in Girgaum is 150-year-old with 25 Colonial-era bungalows. (Bhushan Koyande/HT)

The BMC currently organises the heritage walk in Fort.

The monuments chosen for the heritage walk are located between Girgaum and Nana Chowk, and are undergoing restoration work.

The BMC has selected structures that have significantly contributed to the politics and history of India, or have given Mumbai its unique identity as a metropolis. This list of structures includes iconic places such as Gokuldas Tejpal Auditorium at Grant road, where the Indian National Congress was founded in December 1885.

It also includes Mani Bhavan, which was Mahatma Gandhi’s political headquarters in Mumbai between 1917 to 1935, during which non-cooperation and Swadeshi movements of the Indian freedom struggle were planned.

Assistant commissioner of the D ward, Vishwas Mote, who has initiated the Heritage walk project said, “We are carrying out restoration work on many structures before we can add them to the heritage walk list. Some structures are not in the BMC’s possession or ownership, so we are also in talks with concerned parties. The walk is likely to start by next year, as per plan.” Once all structures are restored, Mote plans to display a full list of heritage structures in the Girgaum area on plaques across the ward, for tourists.

Mote said, “Even though BMC will organise the walk, we will hand over the operations to an enthusiastic group of explorers, who can organise weekly heritage walks.”