+Ve ALAPPUZHA:
ith its old mansions built in the pre-independence era, the Gujarati Street gave a perfect setting to the 1992 Malayalam blockbuster Vietnam Colony. The hilarious moments depicting a series of events where a builder wants to evict the residents and develop the area are etched in almost every Malayali’s memory. While the Mohanlal-starrer ended in favour of the residents, the old buildings are now in a dilapidated state.
But the Alappuzha Heritage Project offers a ray of hope. For the state government is planning to renovate the structures by conserving their antiquity and architecture. According to Dhruvkumar Pandya, a Gujarati community member, the government has been reconstructing buildings owned by the community in the street. “The government will renovate the buildings by spending its own money if the owners wish to conserve them. If the owners are willing to convert the renovated structures into museums for exhibition, the government will sign an agreement with them for profit sharing. Otherwise the building will be renovated without affecting their antiquity and handed over to the owners,” Dhruv said.
Many buildings in the street are in a poor state, with a portion of one of the buildings caving in during the last rainy season.The military canteen buildi ng situated in the street was constructed during the British era. Later it was bought by Kachi-Meman community , which sold it to the Gujarati Jain community. A few buildings are owned by the Sanathan Vaishnav Mahan and some others by the Jain Temple trust.
Some owners fear they may lose rights over the buildings after the government renovates them. This is delaying the hand-over. “If the government spends crores for the renovation, it may demand money from us later. We won’t be able to shell out such huge amounts. So we haven’t decided on handing over the buildings for renovation,” said a community member.The government has already begun the renovation of Anil Seth’s house after signing an agreement with him. A few other old buildings are also being renovated. Along with the reconstruction, the landmark Triple Bridge will also get a makeover.