Photos: Delhi’s 150-yr-old Town Hall awaits overhaul as heritage hotel

With the North Delhi Municipal Corporation’s standing committee recently clearing a renovation proposal, the British era college turned MCD office known today as the Town Hall in Chandni Chowk will soon don a new role once reconstruction work begins. Once a Municipal Corporation of Delhi office, the building has been lying vacant after the MCD was shifted to the Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Civic Centre. Plans say the building will be turned into a heritage museum and hotel. However a lack of coordination between the state and central government since 2012 has hindered this ambitious project.

Updated on: Jul 12, 2018 2:25 PM IST

News

Share via

• 
• 
• 
• 

Copy link

• 

1/11

View Photos in a new improved layout

Updated on Jul 12, 2018 2:25 PM

Delhi’s Town Hall, a British era building in the heart of Chandni Chowk — once the headquarters of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) — is going to be redeveloped into a centre of cultural and social heritage. Years of neglect towards this 150-year-old structure have resulted in crumbling window panes, doors, flaking plaster, ceiling and walls, eating away the remains of a lost era. (Sanchit Khanna / HT Photo)

2/11

View Photos in a new improved layout

Updated on Jul 12, 2018 2:25 PM

Ever since the relocation of the MCD to the Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Civic Centre, the Town Hall has been lying vacant. Spread across 16 acres, this British-era building was planned before India’s First War of Independence in 1857. (Sanchit Khanna / HT Photo)

3/11

View Photos in a new improved layout

Updated on Jul 12, 2018 2:25 PM

As one enters the building, a portrait of Mahatma Gandhi and the mayor’s symbolic key to the city greets visitors. Rooms that were once offices of civic officials are now covered in dust and the crumbling walls speak of a bygone age. Built with funds collected as subscription from Indian citizens, the Town hall was initially known as the Lawrence Institute before the municipality bought it. (Sanchit Khanna / HT Photo)

4/11

View Photos in a new improved layout

Updated on Jul 12, 2018 2:25 PM

The symbolic key to Delhi that was given to the mayors of Delhi in the past is housed in a dusty showcase. Historian and author Rana Safvi feels that the Town Hall is testimony to the British rule as well as the fight against it by Indians. (Sanchit Khanna / HT Photo)

5/11

View Photos in a new improved layout

Updated on Jul 12, 2018 2:25 PM

A view of the commissioner's room. In its heyday, the Town Hall served as an office for the municipality, commerce and literary society. Recently a proposal to develop Town Hall as a tourist destination of international standards has been finalised and the location will soon emerge as a centre depicting the culture and social heritage of Delhi. (Sanchit Khanna / HT Photo)

6/11

View Photos in a new improved layout

Updated on Jul 12, 2018 2:25 PM

The building houses over 50 rooms and two meeting halls, and is presently used by the corporation to hold meetings. Occasionally the rooms are also rented out for movie shootings and other meetings. As per media reports, once the refurbishing project is executed the civic body expects to earn around Rs 2 crore per month. (Sanchit Khanna / HT Photo)

7/11

View Photos in a new improved layout

Updated on Jul 12, 2018 2:25 PM

Old machines used for printing are seen lying in a derelict state. The printing press building which lies adjacent to the Town Hall’s main building will house a boutique hotel. Officials have said that the hotel will offer a luxurious stay in Shahjahanabad. The rooms will be decorated in traditional styles depicting the history and culture of Shahjahanabad. (Sanchit Khanna / HT Photo)

8/11

View Photos in a new improved layout

Updated on Jul 12, 2018 2:25 PM

The proposal to convert Town Hall into a boutique hotel and a museum is not new and has been on the corporation’s agenda since 2012 — after the trifurcation the unified Municipal Corporation of Delhi and the shifting of the civic body’s headquarter to Civic Centre. (Sanchit Khanna / HT Photo)

9/11

View Photos in a new improved layout

Updated on Jul 12, 2018 2:25 PM

On the ground floor of the building is a British era meeting room which will be converted into a hall for audio visual shows. The whole complex will be redesigned with a craft bazaar, fountain and facilities for cultural programmes. There will also be dedicated zones for street food, a play area for children, a digital library, lecture rooms, sculpture garden, a museum and dining areas. (Sanchit Khanna / HT Photo)

10/11

View Photos in a new improved layout

Updated on Jul 12, 2018 2:25 PM

The press building is used for storing the corporation’s materials, while the top floor is used for storing records. According to officials there will be no changes made to the facade of the building and reconstruction work will only be carried out on the interiors as per heritage conservation guidelines. (Sanchit Khanna / HT Photo)

11/11

View Photos in a new improved layout

Updated on Jul 12, 2018 2:25 PM

A view of the meeting hall constructed for Mayoral discussions in 1937. A lack of coordination between the Centre and state government has led to the project being stalled for years. North Delhi Municipal Commissioner Praveen Gupta confirmed that the project was initially to be funded by Union tourism ministry but could not materialise. It will now be developed in a public-private partnership model. (Sanchit Khanna / HT Photo)