Nyay Mandir City Museum project remains non-starter, 6-month after State Govt transferred building to VMC

Aastha Mishra

Vadodara: Gujarat Chief Minister  Bhupendra Patel during his visit to Vadodara formally handed over the Nyay Mandir building to Vadodara municipal corporation (VMC) for its development as a heritage museum. However, even 6 months after that the project has been a non-starter and achieved no further progress.

The building is regularly cleaned, but nothing more has changed there. When inquired with the VMC officials, they said the tender process is yet to be initiated for this project.

It has been further learned that VMC in its annual budget for the financial year 2023-24 has proposed Rs. 20 crore expenditure to develop the Vadodara International Cultural Centre at Nyay Mandir in Vadodara and stated that efforts will be made to make it an important place of tourist interest, so the work on the project is likely to commence within the present financial year.

The annual budget of VMC for the current year also proposes to develop a Painting Museum at a cost of Rs. 1 crore by renovating a historical building near Tambekar Vada in the Raopura area. The budget also proposed to initiate the procedure for ‘Heritage City’ status to Vadodara. VMC has in its budget for the current financial year also proposed to develop a Rs. 5 crore Heritage Square for various cultural programs and exhibitions aligned to the Sursagar pond in the Nyay Mandi area. However, nothing much has happened in connection with any of these proposed projects so far.

The Nyay Mandir building was inaugurated on November 30, 1896, by Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad III, then ruler of Baroda state. Designed by Robert Chisholm, the building was supposed to be a vegetable market but eventually, it was used as the town hall and later for the judiciary of Baroda state. The building was named after Sayajirao’s wife Maharani Chimnabhai whose marble statue is prominently placed inside the central hall of the building. It was in use till the year 2018. After that, the courts shifted to a new building in Diwalipura. Plans to set up a city museum and other facilities at Nyay Mandir were being discussed since 2014.

DeshGujarat