Notices to CMDA, Rlys on PIL against demolition of rly station

The Madras High Court today issued notices to Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority and Southern Railway on a PIL seeking a direction not to alter, demolish or tamper with in any manner Royapuram railway station, the oldest one in the subcontinent.
The PIL filed by advocate S Sathya Chandran said the station, inaugurated on July 1, 1856, has immense heritage value and Southern Railway has on an 'ill-advised move' sought to remove it from the heritage list.
The division bench comprising justices R Banumathi and T S Sivagnanam issued notices to CMDA and Southern Railway, and adjourned the matter after two weeks for further hearing.

Chandran pointed out that Southern Railways had already approached the state Heritage Conservation Committee, requesting them to remove the railway station from the list of heritage buildings to enable them undertake some 'development projects' at the site.
He said the station building was of historic importance and the heritage structure occupied only a small portion on the 72-acre railway campus.
According to the petitioner, CMDA had enumerated around 350 structures of which 66 had been shortlisted for being treated as heritage structures. The list hosted on CMDA website says the station is item no. 26 and has been described as Grade-1 heritage structure, he said.

While it is completely ill-advised move to raze that structure, he said, adding, it would sound the death-knell to conservation of heritage structures in the city, causing loss to the country's heritage structures.