Vadodara: The Indian National Trust for Art & Cultural Heritage (Intach) had on Thursday raised the alarm on the irreparable damage caused to the main dome and the subsidiary dome of the iconic double dome structure of the heritage building.“We had visited and examined the site on Thursday. The historic dome has been punctured at multiple locations which has and will cause irreversible damage to the internal brickwork and hence the life of the dome and the deterioration will commence from here on as these are now vulnerable points for water ingress/ seepage,” leading architect Sanjeev Joshi, who is convener of Intach Vadodara and co-convener of Intach’s Gujarat chapter, who had shot off a letter to ASI, Vadodara circle and MSU, said.“Over the 136 years of this buildings’ life, various restoration works have been carried out in the past but this kind of negligent puncturing of the dome has never been done to support scaffolding. It is clear that the contractors have been extremely irresponsible and we are also shocked how ASI has allowed this,” Joshi’s letter to ASI’s superintending archaeologist said.“The central dome is a unique double dome structure and there is a gap and cavity between the outer dome and the inner dome and it is virtually impossible to access the inner surface of the outer dome from the inside to carry out fool-proof repairs. The repairs done now to plug these holes will only be superficial,” Joshi said. Requesting urgent intervention from ASI, Intach has sought advice from specific experts who can come and see the damage and how can it be made good permanently.

Stay updated with all the Latest Vadodara headlines here. For more exclusive & live news updates from all around India, stay connected with NYOOOZ.