For the past few months, the Metropolitan Magistrate Court Complex on North Beach Road in George Town has been frequented by a group of artisans.
They are part of a restoration team employed by the North Presidency Division of the Public Works Department (PWD), the executive agency working to restore the British-era court complex to its original glory. The restoration is being carried out in the traditional brick and lime mortar method.
Commonly referred as GT (George Town) Court, the two-storey Indo-Saracenic structure is the oldest civil court complex in the city and the first heritage lower court where restoration is nearing completion. A team of experts from various agencies including Archaeological Survey of India (ASI – Chennai Region), Tamil Nadu Archaeology Department and National Centre for Safety of Heritage Structure (NCSHS), IIT-Madras, have been involved in restoration of the 124-year-old heritage building.
The ongoing GT court work is part of the restoration of the Madras High Court Buildings that includes the Small Causes Court, Rajamannar Hall, Metropolitan Magistrate Courts in Egmore and the Old Lighthouse on the High Court premises.
The Rs. 17.20-crore project is funded by the State government and monitored by the High Court Heritage Committee headed by Justice R. Sudhakar, Judge, Madras High Court. “Restoring a functional building is difficult as we have to ensure our work does not hamper the routine,” an official at the Madras High Court told The Hindu .
At present, the GT Court comprises five Metropolitan Magistrate courts (3,7,8,15,16) and one Fast Track Court (FTC). Also, the court has a bar association hall, records room, administration room and a small veranda on each floor for visitors.
Most of the damage was on the roof with the walls and pillars also bearing deep cracks. The roofing style of the building is known as the ‘Madras Terrace’, a well-known architectural style in the Madras Province during the 19{+t}{+h}century.
The Madras Terrace consists of teak wood joists with burnt bricks laid on lime mortar. Such a flat terrace provides better lighting, ventilation and more fire resistance. The impact of weather and poor maintenance are the reasons for the damage, experts said.
Artisans from Thanjavur were roped in to source the raw materials that were originally used for the construction of the building such as lime stone, palm jaggery, gallnut and river sand.
Limestone from Virudhunagar has less amounts of impurities and more calcium. Likewise, palm jaggery and gallnut from Kalugu Malai are known for their strong binding properties and waterproofing, said officials involved in the project.
The artisans have restored heritage buildings like the Senate House in University of Madras, they added.
