A fight over Gateway’s restoration plan
Supriya Thanawala
Monday, March 20, 2006 00:06 IST
COLABA: Two NGO-cum-citizens’ groups are waging a war over the decor of
the Gateway of India.
After the government approved the Indian National Trust for Culture and
Heritage’s (INTACH) restoration plans for the ‘Gateway Plaza’ in October
2005, a group of local residents have come out against it.
On March 10, Colaba Cuffe Parade Citizens’ Group (CCPCG) dashed off
letters to chief minister ... They have demanded the restoration work
be done according to plans prepared by their experts, namely the Urban
Design Research Institute (UDRI) and renowned architect Charles Correa.
The group has already collected 100 signatures to support their cause.
“We do not agree with the new plan,” says Sanjana Meher, an active
member of the group and resident of Merreweather Road. “The design is
unfair in the way it adds and subtracts existing infrastructure. We are
going to lose a lot of open space.”
The CCPCG is upset with INTACH’s plan to build food courts, a garden and
toilets on the rear end of the Shivaji statue, which it says may hurt
people’s sentiments.
cont'd....
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