Asia Urbs Programme - PONDICHERRY

Achieving Urban, Economic and Environmental Goals through Heritage Preservation Initiatives: This is a project undertaken by the Pondicherry Municipality in partnership with the city of Urbino, Italy,  the city of Villeneuve-sur-lot, France, and the European Commission from May 2003 to April 2005. The programme aimed to address a multitude of prevailing urban issues in order to improve the quality of life and the local economy. Activities included upgrading the local urban economy and the environment through heritage preservation, and initiating participatory decentralized planning and management practices. The approach, process, experience and information related to the project was shared with various stakeholders. Emphasis was given to strengthening public-private partnerships by involving various interest groups, both government and private, to address crucial issues and identify effective and practical solutions.

The two European cities partnering with Pondicherry brought particular expertise: Urbino is recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage City, and Villeneuve-sur-Lot uses modern urban environment management practices to improve the urban infrastructure of the town in the heart of a tourist region. Learning from the experiences of these two cities, the project aimed to conserve Pondicherry’s heritage, not only to enhance the town’s civic infrastructure but also contribute to the local economy by attracting more national and international tourists.

Heritage Survey and Mapping

A detailed listing and coding of heritage value buildings has been prepared by INTACH along with EFEO (Ecole Française d’Extrême Orient) and IFP (Institut Français de Pondichéry). In order to assist the government in establishing legal and financial packages for the preservation of heritage properties in the town, the project undertook a broad survey of the listed buildings’ owners to assess their perceptions and needs, and developed a geographical information system (GIS) incorporating the data and images with spatial features for easier and faster access of data for referencing and monitoring.

Building Restoration and Heritage fund

Following the guidelines set by the Ministry of Environment and Forests, about 300 buildings in the French town and 1,000 buildings in the Tamil town have been identified as heritage buildings. These buildings are regarded as valuable models for understanding the architectural evolution of the town and should be preserved for posterity. Under this scheme:

Renovation and adaptive reuse of the Old Port Office and building in the Tamil Quarter

The building housing the Le Café restaurant had been disfigured by a number of extensions in the 1990s. The government, with assistance from INTACH, restored the building over three months. A traditional house on Perumal Koil Street in the Tamil town was restored and converted into a 10-room heritage hotel, Maison Perumal, by  CGH Earth with assistance from INTACH.

Model Street Restoration

Facades of about 20 heritage houses were restored on Calve Supraya Chetty Street (between Mission and Gandhi streets) at a cost of about 50,000 Euros. Restoration work comprised repairs and painting of the buildings’ façades as well as improvement of general municipal services such as electricity and telephone lines, drainage, sewerage and street lighting. The model street is now easily accessible to visitors and tourists.

Detailed Development Plan

INTACH has been appointed by the Pondicherry Planning Authority to prepare a detailed development plan for the historic town. Once the plan is officially approved by the government, it will give a boost to the creation of heritage zones and will give legal protection to heritage buildings.