Whither Industrial Heritage

Mr Raghunandan , well known vintage and heritage expert brings up a unique heritage issue that often misses our attention: Industrial Heritage. Reader, #HeritageBeku wouid be keen on your thoughts and inputs on this.

‘We need to recognise industrial heritage and acknowledge its role in the history and culture of Bangalore. Many industries were located within the city (Binny mills, Elgin Flour mills, Minerva Mills, NGEF, ITC factory). They have all been relocated or liquidated with not even a trace of them remaining. Not even a tiny museum commemorating them. Similarly we have steam locomotives that are rotting away with little of their history known.

The only industrial heritage structures that remain are the A and B stations of the electricity system, now with BESCOM. I suppose it's only a matter of time before they are demolished.

The railway stations still preserve some old elements. But they have been carelessly restored.

And that's the problem. Careless restoration. Doing the easy 90%. And messing up the critical remaining 10 percent by not doing enough research and mistaking beautification for restoration.

Solution is to go slow, be scientific and involve private enthusiasts in the effort to restore and maintain artifacts of industrial heritage.

And as far as technology heritage is concerned, we must strive, as far as is practically possible, to get old equipment to work in the way that they were meant to be. Old wind up clocks should be wound up and click. Old cars should run. Old steam locos must also hiss, whistle and run.”

Prof Rabindra chips in, ‘Absolutely important as history of technology is the most important indicator of cultural evolution in any society. Very valid point coming from a person who is deeply involved in upholding the values of technological heritage. Thank you for sharing your perspective. “

This is what the vintage car groups do says Mr Raghunandan: ‘ The KVCCC has a decent template of what works in practice when it comes to restoration of old vehicles.

(1) We hold regular shows. For all kinds of enthusiasts. Cars, two wheelers, drivers.

(2) We have technical discussions at our shows. On independence day we held a bike show followed by a tech seminar in which 3 experts spoke on (a) dos and don'ts of restorations of two wheelers (b) handling electrical and carburation issues (c) dos and don'ts for long journeys on classic bikes.’

He informally shares his own experience on the Karnataka Vintage Car Group KVCCC :

´Our WhatsApp group has become a good place to share restoration tips, progress on restorations and similar stuff. Discussions that become useful are immediately archived and put out on our website. We have a huge collection of workshop manuals, digitised.

The result is that over the last two years since a new Executive Committee took over, we have expanded our activities. More members have joined, we have many more displays and drives and more vehicles are being restored and are hitting the road.

We also worked with the government to get the vintage vehicle rules issued for Karnataka. A huge achievement. It streamlines the process for dealing with registration related issues concerning vintage vehicles.’

Excellent example here feels #HeritageBeku . So here is how execution and ideation come together to affect policy . Here’s something to learn from if we proceed on this .

In response to Priya Chetty-Rajagopal query on the ‘how’ of preserving what’s left , Mr Raghunandan responds with Three ideas:

‘(1) Build a collective of enthusiasts around tech and industrial heritage

(2) Document what's left

(3) Maybe collaboration on a few projects? Start with exhibitions and then progress to participation in restorations?’

Readers what are your thoughts ?

And Can we begin ?

Bengaluru monuments call for care

Many are in a poor shape and not enough is being done to conserve them, say experts

Article in Deccan Herald by Rashmi Rajagopal Sept 5 2024

Extract : Citizen groups like Heritage Beku have been instrumental in saving heritage buildings owned by private entities. “But at the end of the day, the owner can choose to do what they want unless authorities can offer to buy. We sometimes intervene by getting fashion houses, consulates or corporations to buy or rent these properties to restore and reuse them. A fine example is designer Tarun Tahiliani’s showroom in Woodlands Hotel, Raja Ram Mohan Roy Road. It is housed in a restored heritage bungalow,” says Priya-Chetty Rajagopal, founder, Heritage Beku.

Tax breaks needed

Maintaining such large properties is not viable and property tax is a huge issue. “The changes in property tax based on capital value rather than self assessment, which is currently on hold, is a death knell to heritage conservation. In fact we urge GoK to waive property tax for heritage properties,” says Priya.

https://www.deccanherald.com/india/karnataka/bengaluru/bengaluru-monuments-call-for-care-3179073

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Full article:

There is not enough being done to conserve these monuments, but the public should also take some responsibility, feels historian Suresh Moona. “The armoury in Kalasipalya for instance is 200 years old. It played an important part in the third Anglo-Mysore war. But it is in a terrible condition. The concerned departments must create public awareness drives about the importance of these sites, so that they do not damage it and instead contribute to its preservation,” he shares. 

Cracks appeared on the walls of the Vanivilas Hospital, Kalasipalya due to the underground metro construction, recalls Moona. The hospital was built in 1935. “One must take utmost care while constructing anything new in their vicinity,” he explains.

Citizen groups like Heritage Beku have been instrumental in saving heritage buildings owned by private entities. “But at the end of the day, the owner can choose to do what they want unless authorities can offer to buy. We sometimes intervene by getting fashion houses, consulates or corporations to buy or rent these properties to restore and reuse them. A fine example is designer Tarun Tahiliani’s showroom in Woodlands Hotel, Raja Ram Mohan Roy Road. It is housed in a restored heritage bungalow,” says Priya-Chetty Rajagopal, founder, Heritage Beku.

Tax breaks needed

Maintaining such large properties is not viable and property tax is a huge issue. “The changes in property tax based on capital value rather than self assessment, which is currently on hold, is a death knell to heritage conservation. In fact we urge GoK to waive property tax for heritage properties,” says Priya.

Basav Biradar, founder of HistoryWallahs, says most monuments in the city are unprotected. Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and state archaeology departments do manage the spaces, but do not do much in terms of conservation. “A few years ago, BDA was working on a master plan which included heritage conservation as a priority but it is yet to be finalised,” he reveals. Laws are flouted routinely. “One of the ASI rule states that no building can come up within a 100-metre radius of any protected monument but the remains of the fort in the city market area is adjacent to the Victoria Hospital compound and it is surrounded by market,” he points out. He adds that the paintings on the walls of Tipu Sultan’s Summer Palace have been deteriorating over the years.

Picking up

Akhila Udayashankar, a conservation architect, is a part of the team that is currently working on restoring the government museum on Kasturba Road. She has a more positive outlook on the future of heritage buildings in the city. “In the past 5-8 years, we have been seeing an increase in efforts to restore both private and non-private buildings,” she says. Her team has worked on a number of old churches such as St Mark’s Cathedral on M G Road and St John’s Church, Frazer Town. They are currently restoring a portion of the East Parade Church on M G Road. She details the challenges conservation architects face. “It is hard to find masons who are skilled in working with lime plaster. Carpenters who are competent in working with teakwood are getting difficult to come by. A lot of the old buildings have stucco work and not many masons are adept at it,” Akhila explains.

Official speaks

D Smitha, Director, Museums, Department of Archaeology, Museums and Heritage, says that the government has been increasing its efforts to preserve heritage structures and monuments. “We introduced the ‘Adopt a monument’ scheme. Through this, NGOs or CSR initiatives can adopt a monument and maintain it for a period of five years. We are also in the process of 3D mapping temples. This way, if the temple suffers damage, it will have a digital image of what it originally looked like and can therefore restore it accordingly,” she shares

On show- GoK Office Heritage

Concept Note: #HeritageBeku - Showcasing Karnataka's Government Heritage Offices

Objective:

- Showcase Karnataka's government heritage office buildings in a creative, innovative, and sustainable manner.

- Engage stakeholders, including the public, especially children and students, government staff, and conservationists.

- Promote tourism and create pride in government functioning and city architecture.

Initiatives:

1. Guided Walks and Tours

2. Painting and Photography Competitions

3. Heritage-themed Contests and Quizzes

4. Signage and Display Boards

5. Social Media Campaigns

6. Collaborations with Schools and Colleges

7. Conservation Workshops

8. Government Heritage Office Staff Ambassadors

Packaging the Idea:

1. Brand Name: #GoKHeritage #HeritageBeku (meaning "Heritage is Needed" in Kannada)

2. Tagline: "Know Your Government, Know Your City's History"

3. Marketing Campaign:

- Social Media: Share engaging content, images, and videos

- Print Media: Advertisements and feature articles

- TV and Radio: Promotional videos and interviews

4. Global Best Practices: Research and adapt successful heritage promotion campaigns

Metrics for Engagement and Impact:

1. Website and Social Media Analytics

2. Visitor Numbers and Feedback

3. Staff Engagement and Ambassadors Program

4. Conservation and Maintenance Efforts

Unique Selling Point:

- A government-led initiative promoting transparency and public engagement

- Involves diverse stakeholders, including children and conservationists

- Showcases government buildings as symbols of pride and heritage

By implementing #GokHeritage #HeritageBeku, the Government of Karnataka can create a sense of ownership and pride among citizens, promote tourism, and ensure the long-term conservation of its heritage office buildings.

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Background notes.

This is citizen initiative #HeritageBeku suggestion for the Government of Karnataka to showcase its own heritage office buildings and offices in Bangalore in creative, innovative and sustainable manner, working with different stakeholders like public, esp children & students govt staff and conservationists. These govt buildings like Vidhana Soudha , NGMA etc have better signage and feature on our tourism focus as well. We need to create detailed report how to package this idea, create more interest from stakeholders like the public, especially staff working in these offices and conservationists.

Also we must draw out an interesting set of initiatives, whether it is contests activities, walks, painting, competitions, government heritage, offices, etc. that can be easily managed and calendarised . Look at innovative ways of creating content and presenting it across various media like social media, print TV and radio.. look at global best practices and create ideas for a good brand name and tagline for this initiative, as well as a marketing campaign to showcase this as a government heritage campaign . #KnowYourGovernment #KnowGovtCityHistory #GovernmentWorking

So the ideal is to create more touch points more visibility, and great pride in these buildings, and therefore more interest in how government works.

This also creates a lot of pride in officers often work under difficult circumstances, in older sometimes crumbling building. By showcasing and encouraging public viewing these buildings, we not only create a sense of great pride in the city architecture and in govt functioning, but also ensure constant maintenance and long-term conservation.

It is also good to try and create some metrics that measure the level of engagement, contents and impact of this initiative on city heritage. We need to highlight that this is a unique and unusual campaign by the government of Karnataka not only highlights government buildings in good condition, but also involves public in the idea of government functioning

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Notes

Heritage focus knowledge, awareness, and love is an important part of creating a great connect of citizens with the city. Bangalore has been an incredible amalgam of different heritage Spaces, whether it is built natural or cultural, but sadly many spaces have disappeared or destroyed over the years because of ignorance or greed, or even sadly indifference. It is this that we must address in order to create a greater love and connect with the city.

While we have a large number of Heritage spaces within the city. It is difficult to access the private or commercial owned once given issues of privacy access and security. And while this is understandable, globally, Heritage homes do allow occasional viewing, and while this also should be certainly encouraged by the government, it is important to go after the low hanging fruit ie government buildings which are existing preserved and regularly used on an ongoing basis. Not only does this Create a great sense of warmth connect and wonder from the citizens who normally see these buildings only from there impressive and grandiose exteriors, but also give them insights into the workings of the government behind these doors and within the walls, have important architecture as well as impact on the Civic structure and development of the city. In addition, this goes along way in ensuring the government staff who occupy these lovingly preserved spaces, take greater pride and ownership in the space that they occupy, not looking at these as merely offices, but also holding spaces for both the past history present work and the future growth of the city. This can go along way in mutually ensuring preservation and pride in the city heritage. For example, Heritage Beku has made an innovative initiative with the postal department by not only uncovering two heritage buildings, but also creating a postal trail across these government buildings, and this has not only created a lot of interest with citizens, but also, strong sense of pride and ownership with the postal staff in their own rich heritage as an essential services provider within the history of historically rich like Bangalore.

We need to identify perhaps six government buildings in the first pilot perhaps starting with Vidhana Soudha , even though the security access will have to be carefully and delicately managed and look at others like The cooperative society Ali asker wrote the AG office of Palace Road the BBSSB offices on Millers and Race course Rd. some of the best offices across Bangalore and so on and so forth.

If this can be targeted for once a quarter or even once a month and specific officers be selected to be the heritage coordinator to explain and show around the public on that day, it would certainly be a great source of pride for them and a good CSR initiative for the office as well This particular effort, as it is the first of its kind would have a very strong effect across the city and the state game