Mayer Bari beautification in Kolkata has moved ahead after the state cleared an impediment affecting the completion of five apartment blocks meant to relocate 100 families from the slum beside the heritage site in Bagbazar.
Construction of the apartment blocks had been stalled since March following the enforcement of the model code of conduct for the Bengal assembly polls. The relocation is required before renovation and beautification work can begin around Mayer Bari, which the state has proposed developing as an international tourist destination.
Minister of state for tourism Purnima Chakraborty, who is also the local MLA, held a meeting with Kolkata Municipal Corporation commissioner Smita Pandey and other senior civic officials and the authorities of Mayer Bari. Chakraborty said she had asked the municipal commissioner to take measures to speed up construction of the five blocks.
“Work had been progressing very slowly under the previous govt. In the last 7-8 years, only 80 out of 300 families were relocated. I have asked the municipal commissioner to take all possible measures to speed up construction of five more blocks where another 100 families will be shifted,” Chakraborty said, according to the report.
The apartments are being developed under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana. After the next 100 families are shifted, the remaining 120 families are expected to be relocated to flats in a subsequent phase. Chakraborty said she had spoken to residents living in makeshift tin-shed houses and that they were willing to move to apartments.
An official associated with Ramakrishna Math and Mission, which maintains Mayer Bari, said completing the relocation of all slum dwellers would free 30% of the land. The organisation’s official also said the rejuvenation of nearby Kumartuli Ghat was progressing.
The proposed works around the site include a parking area, a public toilet and a garden. The stretch around the heritage building is also planned for beautification and lighting. Ramakrishna Math will undertake the rejuvenation and beautification of Mayer Bari and develop the road leading to the site.
Mayer Bari is a two-storey house off Bagbazar Street where Sarada Devi, the wife of Ramakrishna Paramhansa, lived for 11 years between 1909 and 1920. The building receives hundreds of devotees and tourists from India and abroad every day.
The immediate implementation milestone is the completion of the five apartment blocks and the relocation of the next 100 families. The remaining 120 families are scheduled to be shifted in the following phase before the wider precinct works can be completed.
