It was part of a team work with INTACH, Delhi - consultant to the Ministry of textiles, Madhya Pradesh where we prepared a structural appraisal for the sprawling palace complex of Gohar Mahal, Bhopal constructed in 1819. The responsibilities included an intensive distress mapping and assessment, preparing drawings of existing structural details and proposed interventions, preparing estimates, site visits, supervision and coordination and documenting progress of the work. It was a challenging task as a significant deterioration of structural members had been observed.

 

There was an additional fire safety risk as there was extensive use of timber in the building including structural members. Such hazards were also considered while planning for the adaptive reuse of the complex as an urban haat.