The Combined Court building which is being renovated in Nagapattinam.
A couple of colonial era court buildings in Nagapattinam is being restored to their vintage glory by the Public Works Department.
The District Munsif Court and the District Combined Court buildings, believed to be more than a century old, are being renovated by the Building Centre and Conservation Division of the Public Works Department. A Buddhist Vihara (monastery) is believed to have existed on the site. The buildings had come up after the monastery was demolished.
The project, sanctioned at an estimated cost of ₹7.90 crore, entails comprehensive renovation carried out by trained artisans and masons without altering its heritage character. While the conservation work has been completed on the Munsif Court building, nearly 85% of the work has been completed on the District Court building. The remaining work is expected to be completed by March 31, sources said.
The district Munsif Court has a plinth area of about 5,670 sq. ft. on the ground floor. The ground plus first floor building of the Combined Court building has a total plinth area of 34,432 sq. ft. The huge District Court building has a high rise roof and 140 windows. The Munsif Court building has a huge dome and a sphere roof and the entire structure has been restored, the sources said.
In May, a five-member team of the Temple Survey Project of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) visited the court building where a Buddhist Vihara is believed to have existed during the Chola period, to conduct a preliminary survey.
The visit came in the wake of Nagapattinam MLA J. Mohammed Sha Navas’s appeal to the government to revive the Choodamani Vihara in Nagapattinam.
