A spate of changes to the original design of the Parliament House, so as to accommodate the growing numbers of MPs, their staff and security, has been identified as reasons for “endangering” the structural stability of one of India’s most heavily secured buildings.
These changes include toilet blocks added over the years, additional rooms, covering of spaces designated as open courtyards and niches created even on the staircases to meet the growing demand for space.
Built in the 1920s, the Parliament House is a Grade I heritage structure, designed by Edwin Lutyens and Hervert Baker. It has to be conserved in accordance with certain guidelines and its specifications cannot be altered.
The Central Public Works Department (CPWD), which maintains the building, recently identified the canteen as the reason for the “stink” that caused the Rajya Sabha to adjourn twice this year.
The Department has now drawn up a list of additions and alterations to the original structure that it says must go. “We have identified some areas of concern, but it is up to the Lok Sabha Secretariat, owners of the building, to make a plan. We can only come up with short-term solutions, and we implement them wherever necessary, but the Secretariat needs to think of long-term solutions…,” says Sudhir Krishna, Secretary, Urban Development Ministry.
The building’s age, overcrowding, installation of gadgets and appliances and even the heavy security paraphernalia have all put the building under strain. A Ministry official says the building is very old, and even with the best preservation methods, it is liable to wear and tear, but the rampant additions and changes made to accommodate more people is endangering it. For instance, the number of toilets blocks has doubled, but the sewerage capacity is limited. Similarly, the installation of appliances for air-cooling and security gadgets has also caused some damage.
The covering of open spaces and corridors, the official argues, has violated fire safety norms. The canteen is run from a location that has no provision for sullage removal. Security cables have taken up the spaces originally designed for water, sewage and storm water pipes.
Unsystematic and haphazard construction and indiscriminately laid cables and wires are all contributing to the building’s deterioration. Work to remove redundant cables, defunct gadgets, clearing of shafts and tunnels for the free passage of water and sewage are undertaken by the CPWD, but the agency wants more steps to decongest the building.
While the Urban Development Ministry has written to the Lok Sabha Secretariat, urging it to “take action,” conservation experts are critical that despite the guidelines, the government is showing scant regard for the building’s structural integrity and is deviating from the rules. “The government does not follow its own rules; additions to Grade I buildings like Parliament, North and South Blocks are being merrily allowed. Look at what has been allowed to happen to Connaught Place in the name of renovation. There is no sensitivity to the conservation of heritage buildings. There are manuals for maintenance of Grade I buildings, there is a Heritage Conservation Society, there are guidelines for maintenance, yet heritage seems to have no consequence in our society,” said A.G.K. Menon, convener of the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage’s Delhi Chapter.
