he sea-facing French Consulate building on Marine Street, which runs a tight ship in catering to visa demand from southern States, is also setting an example in heritage conservation.
The 300-year-old building, which also doubles up as the residence of French Consul General Philippe Janvier-Kamiyama, has periodically had replacements of termite-ravaged rafters and installation of cement brackets at the junction of the perpendicular pattern of wooden beams and rafters on the ceiling.
A major renovation in 2009 featured replacement of the lime-cement upper layer of the Madras Terrace Roofing.
On Monday, a badly damaged segment of the wooden beam supporting the roof structure was being taken out and a Burma teak replica fixed in its place.
The Consulate building is twice the age of The Mairie which was built in 1870-71 and succumbed to neglect last year. It is also a prominent structure in the ensemble of sea-facing landmarks dating back to the era of French rule.
“On account of its age and the corrosive effects of exposure to humidity and sea salt due to the proximity to the coast, maintenance of the French Consulate is virtually a ceaseless activity,” says G.S. Pattanaik, Technical Manager at the Consulate.
It was a leak during a rainy month several months ago that attracted the attention of the maintenance staff to one particular beam segment of the roof though the extent of decay of the beam would be assessed later.
“Once it was evident that the beam was in a precarious state, we had an exact replica fashioned out of teak,” said Mr. Pattanaik.
The 30-ft teak piece alone costing about Rs. 6 lakh was sourced from Panrutti.
Almost three weeks before starting the work to replace the damaged beam, workers put up columns of props to support the roof on the first floor of the building as well as on the ground floor to shoulder the entire weight of the section.
Only a minor section of the Consulate had to be sealed and staff evacuated for the work.
The entire sequence of operation was determined by INTACH which also arranged the workers specialised in maintenance of heritage structures.
Workers put up a scaffolding on the roof to access the damaged segment of the beam. Once the beam was loosened off its hinge, it was lifted down using a crane. “The antiquity of the beam that got damaged is not known. To my knowledge none of the beams have been replaced since the departure of the French over six decades ago,” said Mr. Pattanaik.
An aluminum chip denoting the date on which it was fastened to the roof would be sealed on the new beam, he added.
“It would’ve been impossible to execute the work without disturbing the Consul General’s work and stay. Which is why we timed it to coincide with the brief period his family is away on vacation,” said Mr. Pattanaik.
due to proximity to the coast, maintenance of the French Consulate is a ceaseless activity”G.S. Pattanaik,Technical Manager at the Consulate.
