I have strolled past  the demure heritage red EC building on my Cubbon Parks daily walks . You too? Well, I just read with horror that a huge 7 storey building as a High Court Annexe, will replace it now. 

Yes. The recent order passed by the Honourable single judge panel #PWD 33 BJP 2019, on 17 Oct 2019 allowing a seven-story construction within the our precious heritage lung space Cubbon Park is causing citizens severe shock . It goes against the 2001 ruling to preserve the nature of the city especially the precious and historic spaces like Cubbon Park which have unfortunately been encroached  and diluted over the last few years. Cubbon Park is an emotive and beloved city landmark for Bangaloreans, and this hurts. 

The many factors to consider are:

1. Security . A seven storey building within the radius of Vidhana Soudha and Raj Bhavan is disallowed as a security risk .
2. Heritage Demolition  why destroy beloved heritage building for no purpose?
3. Public Parks are sacrosanct and cannot be used like this. It is NOT a commercial area to be developed. Has the area been denotified? 
4. PWD plans that have been approved, are not available in public domain to understand how this building will follow heritage norms and what is the spatial contiguity  to other buildings , heritage space and historical structures. 

The Draft Revised Master Plan 2017 had a strong coverage on heritage . HeritageBeku via its Heritage RMP2017 inputs (link below)  has specifically covered this kind of arbitrary and forced construction to protect the city . What has got to the heart of all citizens is that the very venerable courts that we respect so much has briefly forgotten this while allotting space for themselves.

Think of the message it sends out.

#WeTrustOurCourts. We have no doubts at all that the Honourable High Court will definitely address this issue and we also know that this inadvertent error that has allowed this, will be speedily brought to notice and quickly actioned to preserve our city. Sign this petition to make sure no further construction is allowed at this historic site. 

Along with the team of 200 at #HeritageBeku, we need your support to protect the city we all love and stand by. 

Useful Links:

• https://www.deccanherald.com/city/bengaluru-infrastructure/7-floor-building-in-cubbon-park-gets-ok-771741.html
• http://bbmp.gov.in/documents/10180/504904/Zoning_Regulations_RMP2015f.pdf/0a916060-b198-4903-b7cd-d18db7096ebd
• http://data.opencity.in/Documents/Recent/Bengaluru-BDA-RMP-2031-Volume_6_Zoning_Regulations.pdf
• http://bengaluru.citizenmatters.in/heritage-beku-rmp-suggestions-bangalore-23029
• https://www.livelaw.in/pdf_upload/pdf_upload-365911.pdf
• https://www.livelaw.in/news-updates/karnataka-hc-grants-permission-for-constructing-hc-annexe-building-inside-cubbon-park-without-cutting-trees-read-order-149251
• https://esgindia.org/new/education/note-on-the-ongoing-cubbon-park-denotification-and-construction-of-lh-annexe-controversy/
•