Renovated Flora Fountain in South Mumbai unveiled

The iconic Flora Fountain in South Mumbai was unveiled Thursday after completion of the restoration work.

The unveiling was done by Mumbai mayor Vishwanath Mahadeshwar and Shiv Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray.

"Happy to have unveiled the Flora Fountain, iconic as ever along with the mayor of Mumbai and other dignitaries," Aaditya Thackeray tweeted.

He said he had visited the monument while it was being worked upon.

"To what it from inside is also something that makes you speechless. The plan now is to bring alive the heritage precinct to its real glory with small interventions that add t it. Such plazas are needed," he said.

Meanwhile, civic officials have said the work of giving a face-lift to the area around the heritage structure and landscaping will take another few months to complete.

"The restoration of Flora Fountain, named after Flora, the mythological Roman goddess of flowers, has been completed and it would be formally thrown open for public viewing on Thursday," the officials said.

Noted architect Vikas Dilawari, who is overseeing the project on behalf of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), said the restoration work was divided into two parts.

"The first part of the restoration work of the main monument is now complete. It will be opened for public viewing tomorrow. The second part of the restoration work involves upgradation of the surrounding and landscaping, which will take another few months," he said.

The work to renovate the 153-year-old Gothic Revival architecture was given to the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) by the BMC in September 2016.

However, the organisation had stopped the work towards the end of 2017 due to paucity of funds. The restoration work resumed in March 2018.

Flora Fountain is an ornamentally and exquisitely sculpted architectural heritage monument located in the Fort business district in the heart of the southern part of Mumbai.

Built in 1864, the decorated structure is a fusion of water, architecture and sculpture depicting the Roman goddess Flora.