PANJIM: Following reports that the Kala Academy is under the threat of demolition, the Charles Correa Foundation based in Panjim has said it was not consulted on this.
In a statement, mailed by Nondita Correa Mehrotra, daughter of Charles Correa, the foundation said, “We have not been consulted about the state of the building, nor has our opinion been asked regarding repairs. Both Nondita Correa Mehrotra, Director, and Arminio Ribeiro, Trustee of the Foundation met the Minister of Art and Culture in early 2018 on another matter. At this meeting, the Minister brought up the issue of leakage in the building and we were asked to return the following week when Chirag Jain, who was involved in an extensive renovation of the building in 2004, would be in Panjim. However, the following week, the meeting was cancelled by the Minister’s office, and no further notification was ever given.”
The foundation said that as the Kala Academy is a much-revered building, and one that Correa was very fond of, they would be happy to assist or advise to stabilise and restore the building. In the statement they further said, “The Charles Correa Foundation is confident that we have the knowledge pool to work with the government in finding a solution for structural restoration of the building. The foundation would like to appeal to the Govt and citizens to involve us in the process of addressing the problems that have arisen at the Academy, in a way that preserves the architecture and integrity of a building that has a place in the hearts of most Ponnjekars.”
They said that Correa cared deeply for Goa and after he closed his practice in Mumbai, he established his Foundation in Goa, and over the last eight years, it has been actively involved in projects on urban design, planning and heritage conservation in Goa.
