Mysuru’s ‘Dodda Gadiyara’ all set to chime again after 3 decades

Mysuru: The city corporation has initiated measures to repair, renovate and conserve the Silver Jubilee Clock Tower, popularly called as ‘Dodda Gadiyara’, near Rangacharlu Town Hall, almost 30 years after it stopped chiming.
A team comprising heritage experts, structural engineers, district heritage committee member N S Rangaraju, mayor Tasneem Bano and MCC commissioner Gurudatta Hegde inspected the prominent heritage landmark to initiate measures to repair the iconic structure.
Speaking to TOI, Hegde said they have collected the masonry material, lime mortar, rusted iron and samples of the construction material that had chipped off over the years from the 75ft tall structure.
These samples were sent to the Regional Conservation Laboratory (RCL), a branch of National Research Laboratory for Conservation of Cultural Property in the city. RCL is well-equipped with adequate infrastructure and laboratories for material analysis and testing, developing sustainable conservation solutions. Some of the samples of the 93-year-old structure were also sent to a laboratory in Pune for analysis.
“There is a 5.5ft tall bell on top of the tower and it has stopped ringing since the last 30 years. The weight of the French-made bell is around 920kg. The arch of the structure has cracks owing to rusting of the iron used in the construction. As cracks have developed in the area near the bell, the civic body is consulting experts to repair the clock and regain its past glory,” he said.
The official said the civic agency has set aside Rs 35 lakh for the work and is awaiting the laboratory results. Once the clock repair experts are finalised, the work will commence. “It will be renovated in the next three months, if all goes well,” he added.
The prominent landmark, which was built to commemorate the silver jubilee of the coronation of Nalwadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar in 1927, has withstood all climatic vagaries nearing centuries. The clock tower has been built in Indo-Saracenic style and has a canopy in Rajasthani style.