Ambedkar Bhavan can be restored: Architect to HC

MUMBAI: The damages caused to the Ambedkar Bhavan in Dadar, which also houses a printing press started by Dr BR Ambedkar, during the demolition drive in June 26

MUMBAI: The damages caused to the Ambedkar Bhavan in Dadar, which also houses a printing press started by Dr BR Ambedkar, during the demolition drive in June 26 are not irreparable and the building can be restored, said a report filed in the Bombay high court on Monday by Suresh Prabhu, an architect.

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Prabhu, who has also designed the proposed Ambedkar Memorial, was assigned the task to assess the damages by HC.

The court issued the order while hearing a plea by The People’s Improvement Trust (TPIT), which manages the Ambedkar Bhavan, seeking a stay on the rebuilding of the structure into a 17-storey building.

The architect, with a few structural engineers, visited the Ambedkar Bhavan last week and on Monday submitted an assessment report.

As per the report, the demolition affected three main parts of the building—Buddha Bhushan printing press, which is run by Dr BR Ambedkar’s grandson Prakash Ambedkar, Multipurpose Hall that also houses some offices and the middle structure or the shed.

It stated that while the printing press has suffered the most damages, all equipment in the press was unaffected and that none of the three structures suffered irreversible “structural distress.”

Prabhu, in the report, also said once restored, it can be “safe and habitable” once again.

The trustees and Dr Ambedkar’s kin have been at loggerheads since the demolition, which, according to the trustees, was carried out following a BMC notice that had declared the structure unfit for occupation and asked them to demolish it.

The court is likely to hear the matter on August 18.