The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : ‘Skilled conservationists hard to find’

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Saturday, Sep 01, 2007
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Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

‘Skilled conservationists hard to find’

Staff Reporter

Public Works Department staff being trained in conservation of heritage structures

— Photo: K. Gopinathan

Guided tour: Governor Rameshwar Thakur (left) looking at photo exhibits before the inauguration of the seminar on Rehabilitation and Conservation of Heritage Structures, in Bangalore on Friday, along with S. Chinnaswamy, vice-president, Indian Building Congress.

Bangalore: Existing laws are inadequate to protect the State’s heritage monuments, of which around 1,500 are protected sites and 25,000 are unprotected, said I.M. Vittala Murthy, Secretary, Department of Kannada and Culture, and Information and Tourism, on Friday.

At a seminar on the Rehabilitation and Conservation of Heritage Structures organised here by the Indian Building Congress and the Central Public Works Department, Mr. Murthy said “unrestricted development around heritage sites can be prevented by declaring zoning regulations under the Town and Country Planning Act and by preparing comprehensive site management plans”.

Training

Conserving monuments requires substantial funds and expertise, he said. “Special training must be provided to engineers and architects, who are often only accustomed to conventional concrete buildings.”

Sudhir Krishna, Principal Secretary, Public Works Department (PWD) also expressed concern over the dearth of skilled personnel to conserve heritage structures. “Civil engineering courses are not designed to adequately deal with specialised techniques needed for heritage preservation,” he said.

The participation of local bodies, including panchayats and municipal authorities, should be sought in all initiatives to protect heritage sites and create awareness, he said.

Mr. Krishna said the PWD planned to bring heritage engineers into its cadres shortly. “The PWD, in collaboration with the Archaeological Survey of India, has already begun to train staff in the area,” he said.

Governor Rameshwar Thakur said heritage sites should be preserved for their aesthetic value, for their contribution to tourism and also for their cultural role. “It is a matter of concern that these sites are being encroached upon for commercial activity,” he said.

Many heritage structures are in “distress”, said K.S. Jagadish, professor, R.V. College of Engineering. “Several buildings are facing structural problems, such as St. Andrews Church in Bangalore where cracks have formed due to heavy rainfall. Material deterioration has also taken its toll on some sandstone structures, including the Virupaksha temple in Pattadakal. Buildings are also threatened by vegetation, such as the peepul, which can grow to destroy the structure with its roots,” he said.

Research into traditional building techniques, such as mud architecture and bamboo lattice, is needed to better understand heritage structures in order to renovate them, Prof. Jagadish added.

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