Surat: Every city must follow good
conservation practices to preserve and restore historical places, said Nalini Thakur.
Thakur, one of the pioneers in the field of architectural conservation in the country, said for far too long, bad practices have only given the country a bad name. Not many people and administrators understood the meaning of conservation, but things have started to change now, she said at Toran lecture series at Surat Heritage Trust here on Monday evening .
Sumesh Modi, Surat Heritage Trust convener, said, “Surat has of late adopted good conservation practices. City will have metro rail by 2022. The original plan was that the metro train will go over the top of Surat castle. After consultation with conservation architects, this portion will now be built underground. A rail bridge or a flyover over a protected monument could have damaged the structure.”
Thakur told TOI, “For a city like Surat, more people need to get involved in conservation of historical structures. An awareness needs to be created among students in schools and colleges. City needs to devise its own ways towards conservation.”
Thakur, former head of department of architectural conservation, School of Planning and Architecture, New Delhi has worked and taught in different institutes of the world in the areas of planning and conservation architecture.
She said effective communication will yield great results and make conservation an enjoyable and easy task. Thakur said she was in Surat to share her knowledge and experiences with regard to conservation of historical structures.
