The Kolkata Municipal Corporation has given its approval to a proposal to build a multi-storey building in the premises of a Grade I listed heritage building in Kolkata. There has been a fierce debate about this. Despite being listed as a heritage site, how did the Kolkata Municipality approve a proposal to build a 35-storey residential building there? So the question arises. The skyscraper is located on Russell Street. The matter has been sent to the Heritage Commission for final approval. Environmentalists strongly opposed it.
According to sources, the owner of the two-storey heritage building on Russell Street is the Royal Calcutta Turf Club. The club first proposed building a multi-storey hotel on a vacant lot behind the house. The club later changed that proposal and proposed a multi-storey residential building. When this matter came up in the Heritage Committee of Municipal Corporation, a member objected to it. An official of the environment department of the municipality said that no construction can be done in the grade one heritage building complex. However, according to other officials, the address of the heritage building and the proposed multi-storey apartment is the same, but there is a distance of 21 feet between them. According to the rules of the Municipal Corporation, there is no objection to the construction of a multi-storey building in that situation.
A quarter claim that the attorney general of the state himself is a member of that club. As a result, though the Municipality was to take legal advice from the Advocate General, the Advocate General did not undertake the same. In such a situation, there can be allegations of favoritism, so he did not take responsibility. Consequently, another public prosecutor was consulted.
However, the lawyer said that the municipality can approve the construction of heritage houses. In this regard, Mayor Swapan Samaddar of Environment and Heritage Department said, ‘Legal advice has been taken. Permission for construction of 35-storey residential multi-storey building on the club’s land will be given according to all the rules. He said that the heritage building would be kept intact. He also said that apart from building a parking lot to keep 1000 cars in that 35-storey building, a shopping mall would also be built.
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