INDORE: Historians and archaeologists expressed concern over the big chunk of area dug up by Indore Municipal Corporation (IMC) in the vicinity of Gandhi Hall for making a new library.Despite the fact that the old library, which was on the first floor of Gandhi Hall, was never used by locals much, IMC is planning to construct a new one in the vicinity.Historian Sushim Pagare said, there are other places where IMC can construct a library instead of making one near Gandhi Hall as apart from hampering the foundation of the heritage property, it might obstruct the aesthetical look of the property.The new library is expected to be completed in 12 months and will be equipped with modern amenities and will be designed keeping the residents in mind.Senior archaeologist Dr Narayan Vyas said this might weaken the foundation of Gandhi Hall. That’s a beautiful heritage place and its beauty shouldn’t be destroyed by making buildings around it.“They can develop gardens in the vicinity instead. In the name of smart city, we are destroying the heritage structures. They are not understanding that we do require our legacy along with the modernity,” he said.The library in Gandhi Hall had many alterations done which was damaging the original structure, said Anoop Goyal of IMC who’s handling this project.He said, “The library at Gandhi Hall was small. The new one will be a modern library. There’s a proposal to construct a hall also behind Gandhi Hall so that the heritage property remains as a museum or a public attraction place and not used for functions.”The restoration work that started in Gandhi Hall one and a half months back is going on smoothly at present. Barring the stage, plaster from the hall, and corridors is completely removed. In all the three corridors the first layer of plaster is already completed and soon work of the final layer will start.The restoration work includes replacing the damaged stones, broken tiles, replicating the ceiling, repairing the doors, and windows plus waterproofing of the ceiling which will be done using celery cement and the project is expected to be completed in eleven months. As per IMC officials the complete project is estimated to be approximately Rs 15 crore. Over Rs 6 crore will be used for the restoration work and Rs 9 crore is allocated for the beautification of the vicinity.

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