The glittering bangle market of Lad Bazaar would soon have a facade of arches that would be in sync with the iconic Charminar’s heritage character.
Charminar was recently included in the list of Swachh Iconic Places (SIP), an initiative of the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation.
The Qutb Shahi structure, now a part of the SIP’s Phase-II, finds itself alongside nine other sites such as the Somnath temple, Gangotri and Yamunotri. The SIP’s Phase-I has 10 sites that includes the Taj Mahal, Ajmer Dargah and the Golden Temple.
Seeking funds
Speaking to The Hindu on Saturday, Municipal Administration and Urban Development Principal Secretary Arvind Kumar said funds from the NTPC Limited were being sought for the project.
The NTPC is one of the several partners which would fund the initiative under its corporate social responsibility (CSR) activity.
While the SIP’s intention is to strive for a cleaner environment at the 20 identified sites, the Telangana government is seeking something more. “Instead of requesting the NTPC for small work, we thought it best to ask them to co-fund something which adds relevance to Charminar’s heritage character. Every shop in the Lad Bazaar has a different facade. This is why we have decided to have a uniform heritage facade which will have arches and other elements. This will bring Lad Bazaar in harmony with the architecture of Charminar,” Mr. Kumar said.
While the estimated cost of the project is ₹34 crore, proposals are being prepared, which would be sent to the office of NTPC Limited Chairman and Managing Director Gurdeep Singh.
In order to better execute the Charminar Pedestrianisation Project, IAS officer and Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation Additional Commissioner Mohammed Musharraf Ali Farooqui has been appointed the officer on special duty to monitor CPP, said Mr. Kumar.
