Two heritage buildings to be restored in Puducherry

PUDUCHERRY: Two dilapidated heritage buildings that housed government schools in the Union territory of Puducherry are set to be restored to their past glory under the Puducherry smart city development project.
Puducherry smart city development limited (PSCDL) accorded approval to restore Calve College building at an estimated cost of 4.8 crore and VOC school building at an estimated cost of 2.8 crore. A Mumbai-based firm M/s Savani Heritage Conservation private limited has come forward to restore the two buildings.
PSCDL will soon issue the work order to the private firm to commence the project. The company has directed the private firm to complete the project within a period of 12 to 16 months so that the two government schools can resume their academic operations in the new buildings.
The Calve College building is an interesting mix of Indian and colonial architectural designs. It was built by Calve Souprayachettiar, a noted philanthropist and was opened in 1875 to impart education to caste Hindus and Muslims initially and later to children from all castes. The two-storied facade is characterised by a series of arcaded corridors. A central collonaded porch with a pediment marks the main entrance of the building. The classrooms are arranged around a large U-shaped courtyard with collonaded verandas. On the first floor, there is a series of columns supporting the sloped Mangalore tile roof.
The vast building has a large street frontage and is bound on three sides by street.
The building which housed the VOC school situated on the corner of Mission Street and Needarajappaiyar Street is one of the noted landmarks of Puducherry. It was named after freedom fighter V O Chidambaram Pillai. It was built in 1885. The architectural design was inspired by the Calve College building with European features. The building still retains its predominant character, style and architectural features. Though preserved poorly, it has a great impact on the streetscape. It is one of the few European style buildings in the Tamil precinct.