Mysuru: Two years after the tragic death of four persons owing to the collapse of a roof of a shop at the more than a century-old heritage Lansdowne building in the heart of the city, Chief Minister Siddharamaiah this morning performed Bhoomi Puja for its renovation.
Speaking on the occasion, Siddharamaiah said that the State Government has released Rs. 6 crore for its renovation and added that the century-old heritage structure was dilapidated and needed renovation.
Chief Minister Siddharamaiah also instructed the contractor to complete the works on time and to maintain the high quality of works.
Lansdowne Building being more than 100-years-old needed much care from the authorities for its maintenance. Previously, the authorities concerned neglected the maintenance of the landmark building which resulted in the death of four persons as a roof of a shop in it collapsed on Aug. 25, 2012.
After the tragic incident, the authorities had cordoned off the entire building forcing its tenants to vacate their shops.
However, the Mysuru City Corporation (MCC) built temporary shops opposite the Lansdowne Building after the vendors paid Rs. 65,000 each for the construction of the shops apart from having to pay monthly rent.
As per the Detailed Project Report (DPR) it was decided to demolish the first floor of the building to re-lay the roof of the first floor. Later, the second floor will be renovated retaining the same heritage design.
After the restoration of the building, the shops would be handed back to the tenants.
District In-charge Minster V. Sreenivasa Prasad, Mayor R. Lingappa, Deputy Mayor Mahadevamma, MLAs M.K. Somashekar and Vasu, DC C. Shikha, KEA Chairman R. Murthy, MUDA Chairman K.R. Mohan Kumar, MUDA Commissioner S. Palaiah, MCC Commissioner Dr. C.G. Betsurmath and others were present.
MLA Vasu miffed
Chamaraja MLA Vasu, openly expressed his displeasure in front of the CM alleging that he was not invited for the function and took MCC Commissioner to task for violating the established protocol of inviting an MLA.
Meanwhile, area Corporator Prashanth Gowda came in severe criticism from the CM for failing to control unabeted littering on the rear side of the heritage structure.
