Heritage corridor likely in Karnal by April next

Parveen Arora

Tribune News Service

Karnal, December 6

Karnal Smart City Limited (KSCL), a special purpose vehicle looking after the Smart City project, has chalked out a plan to develop a heritage corridor on a stretch of around 4 km between Shrimad Bhagavad Gita Dwar near Baldi Bypass and Clock Tower Chowk in the city.

Set up in 1808 and one of the oldest in the country, the 200-year-old Christian cemetery, Cantonment Church Tower, old court building, record room built in the British era, Victoria Memorial Hall and Kos Minar will be part of the corridor in the first phase. Meanwhile, in the second phase, during the expansion of the corridor, the century-old buildings of Civil Hospital and Karnal Club will be included.

CONSTRUCTION IN TWO PHASES

• First phase: 200-year-old Christian cemetery, Cantt Church Tower, old court building, record room built in the British era, Victoria Memorial Hall and Kos Minar will be included
• Second phase: During the expansion of the corridor, the century-old buildings of Civil Hospital and Karnal Club will be included

The plan will be tabled in the meeting of the Board of Directors of the KSCL on December 11 for the final approval. Once approved, the work on the corridor is expected to be completed by April 2021.

“Karnal has a rich legacy of heritage and has proposed to develop this corridor, which will act as a city-level attraction for tourists. Besides, it will help facelift these sites along with preserving heritage and providing information about the culture,” said Nishant Kumar Yadav, DC and CEO, KSCL.

As per historians, Karnal was captured in 1805 by the Britishers and was made into an Army Cantt in 1806. More than 500 graves of European soldiers and their family members are buried in this cemetery. However, due to the lack of maintenance, wild grass has now grown over the graves.

Earlier known as St James Church, the Cantonment Church Tower will also be beautified. “Broken links in the pathway will be connected for making surrounding areas more accessible. Architecture lighting will also be taken care of for safety concerns,”

The buildings of old court and record room along with the Victoria Memorial Hall, all built in the British era, will also be developed as heritage buildings. “Ancient structures are mostly in the Victorian architecture style. Facade restoration will be the main component and the internal part will be painted keeping the original texture intact. The restored building will be reused as a public building. Thematic lights will be added to the old ones. Work will be done on the entry plaza to make it more inviting. The beauty of the Kos Minars will also be visibly enhanced,” he added.