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Vidarbha Heritage Urban Development: Why Ambitious Plans Face Tough Reality

Vidarbha Heritage Urban Development: Why Ambitious Plans Face Tough Reality
Vidarbha Heritage Urban Development: Why Ambitious Plans Face Tough Reality

Heritage urban development initiatives across Vidarbha have struggled with fundamental implementation challenges despite the region's exceptional historical significance and cultural wealth.


The Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana, launched in January 2015, excluded key Vidarbha cities while including Amaravati in Andhra Pradesh, creating an asymmetrical approach to heritage conservation in the broader region. Subsequent efforts to develop heritage infrastructure in major Vidarbha centres like Nagpur and Amravati have encountered persistent funding shortfalls, institutional coordination failures, and inadequate policy integration.


The contrast between ambitious project announcements and actual implementation reveals structural weaknesses that continue to undermine heritage conservation efforts throughout the region.


HRIDAY Scheme Implementation and Regional Exclusion


The Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana operated with a total outlay of Rs 500 crore across twelve selected cities between 2015 and 2019.


None of the major heritage centres in Vidarbha, including Nagpur, Amravati (Maharashtra), or Chandrapur, received selection under this central scheme.

The only regional connection emerged through Amaravati in Andhra Pradesh, which shared historical and cultural links with the broader Vidarbha cultural landscape.


Amaravati's HRIDAY implementation received Rs 16.60 crore across three major projects managed by the Andhra Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation.


These included upgradation of approach roads to heritage sites worth Rs 10.01 crore, development of a 2.5-kilometre heritage walkway costing Rs 2.32 crore, and redevelopment of Amaravati pond with an allocation of Rs 4.27 crore.


The projects aimed to enhance connectivity between heritage assets, including Dharanikota Fort, Mahachaitya Stupa, Amaralingeswara Swamy Temple, and the Archaeological Survey of India museum.


ICLEI South Asia and the Indian Heritage Cities Network Foundation prepared the city's heritage management plan, which received approval from the Ministry of Urban Development.


The implementation included construction of stormwater drains, pedestrian infrastructure, street signage, and heritage-inspired street furniture across 18 road stretches connecting heritage sites.


These upgrades enhanced access to important cultural destinations, including Dharanikota Fort, Amaravati Pond, Mahachaitya Stupa, Kalachakra Museum, Dhyanabuddha Statue, and Zamindar Bungalow.


However, implementation challenges emerged even in this selected city. Government officials visiting Amaravati HRIDAY sites in April 2017 noted persistent issues, including a lack of basic amenities for visitors, inadequate signage and information systems, and insufficient coordination between implementing agencies.

The scheme's emphasis on infrastructure development often overshadowed community engagement and local heritage preservation needs, creating projects that failed to fully align with residents' cultural aspirations.


Nagpur's Heritage Development Challenges


Nagpur operates heritage conservation through a dedicated Heritage Conservation Committee established under the Nagpur Municipal Corporation.


The committee, chaired by divisional commissioner Anup Kumar and featuring architects like Paramjeet Singh Ahuja, oversees the city's 138 heritage buildings and conservation areas listed under the Maharashtra State notification of 2003.

These structures represent three distinct historical periods spanning Gond rule (1636-1743), Bhonsale rule (1743-1854), and British colonial administration (1854-1947).


The Zero Mile redevelopment project exemplifies the persistent challenges facing heritage development in Vidarbha. This historically significant site, marking the geographical centre of colonial India, has struggled with chronic neglect despite its Grade I heritage status.


The Nagpur Municipal Corporation submitted a Rs 48 crore Detailed Project Report featuring two museums, underground exhibition spaces dedicated to the Great Trigonometrical Survey, landscaping, and tourism infrastructure.


However, the project faces uncertainty as the state government seeks to repurpose key land parcels for Vidhan Bhavan expansion through the Maha Vista project.


Funding allocation represents a critical bottleneck in Nagpur's heritage development initiatives. The Rs 9.72 crore conservation plan for Gond King Bakht Buland Shah's mausoleum has remained stalled for over nine months due to fund allocation delays.


Despite preparation of detailed beautification plans and removal of illegal encroachments by the Nagpur Improvement Trust, financial backing remains unavailable, leaving the project in limbo and disappointing both citizens and tribal communities who view the site as crucial to the city's historical identity.


The Nagpur Municipal Corporation faces severe financial constraints affecting all development projects.

Despite the state government sanctioning Rs 1,987.60 crore for various infrastructure projects spanning 2022-23 through 2024-25, only Rs 357.12 crore was disbursed, and the municipal corporation received just Rs 42.92 crore, representing merely 2 percent of the sanctioned amount.


This funding shortfall has forced the civic body to either stall several key projects or proceed at an extremely slow pace, with many contractors awaiting payment.


Systemic Issues in Vidarbha Heritage Conservation


Heritage conservation across Vidarbha faces fundamental institutional challenges that transcend individual project failures.


The region contains over 40 major forts built during the Vakataka and Gond rules, yet unlike western Maharashtra forts, no significant conservation efforts are underway to protect this rich historical heritage.

Heritage conservation activists blame the state government for this neglect, while members of the state fort conservation committee attribute the problem to jurisdiction clashes between the central archaeology department and state authorities.


Ramesh Satpute, who has organised fort-replica making competitions for 36 years in Nagpur, documented the deteriorating condition of Vidarbha's heritage structures.


The state-level fort conservation committee concentrates primarily on western Maharashtra forts, with major structures like Gavilgad in Amravati remaining under the central government archaeology department jurisdiction. This jurisdictional complexity prevents state intervention even when local authorities express a willingness to undertake conservation work.


Culture Minister Sudhir Mungantiwar's office confirmed that Maharashtra government has requested transfer of temples and forts from central archaeology department to state archaeology department for restoration purposes.


The state government allocated more than Rs 1,000 crore over three years for cultural heritage preservation and decided to allocate 3 percent from District Planning Development Committee funds for heritage conservation. However, these commitments have not translated into visible improvements in Vidarbha heritage sites.


Research conducted by Priyanka Satish Rajani on integrating heritage in urban development specifically examined Nagpur's challenges.


The study identified that heritage resources in Indian cities are frequently ignored in planned development processes, leading to deterioration and loss of economic opportunities. Nagpur's development plans, including the revised draft development plan of 1986-2011 and various heritage notifications, lack coordination and updated listings.


The city contains more than 200 heritage structures and conservation areas, according to Vidarbha Heritage Society, yet planning documents remain outdated and fail to complement each other.


Financial constraints represent the most significant barrier to heritage urban development across Vidarbha. The Union Budget 2024 allocation of Rs 600 crore for irrigation projects in Vidarbha and Marathwada drew criticism from regional development advocates as inadequate.


Former advocate general Shreehari Aney termed this allocation a pittance compared to thousands of crores allocated to Andhra Pradesh and Bihar due to political considerations.


Vidarbha statehood activists expressed disappointment that the region received virtually no major development allocations despite contributing significantly through electricity, minerals, and forest resources. Entrepreneur Dinesh Naidu noted that while Mumbai taxpayers complain about the lack of Maharashtra mentions in central budgets, Vidarbha residents feel similar frustration about inadequate regional planning despite their substantial contributions to state revenues.


The Nagpur Smart City project experienced similar funding challenges, with the Nagpur Smart and Sustainable City Development Corporation Limited receiving Rs 741.63 crore from the central government but facing project completion delays.


Seven projects remain incomplete as the agency prepares to wind up operations and transfer assets to Nagpur Municipal Corporation by December 2025. Original completion deadlines of June 2021 were extended multiple times to June 2023, then June 2024, and finally December 2025.


Infrastructure projects across Vidarbha consistently face funding shortfalls that compromise implementation quality.

The Futala Lake beautification project received Rs 200 crore but resulted in incomplete projects, environmental damage, and ongoing legal battles rather than successful heritage enhancement.


MahaMetro's intervention included a 350-metre viewing gallery and mechanised parking facility, but progress stalled due to legal disputes and environmental violations, leaving expensive infrastructure unused and deteriorating.


Policy Coordination and Institutional Challenges

Policy Coordination and Institutional Challenges for Heritage Structures in Vidarbha
Policy Coordination and Institutional Challenges

Heritage urban development in Vidarbha suffers from inadequate coordination between multiple implementing agencies and policy frameworks.


The Heritage Conservation Committee's operations demonstrate both progress and limitations in multi-agency coordination.

Recent committee meetings addressed proposals from various agencies, including the Indian Railway Stations Development Corporation Limited for railway station redevelopment and Maharashtra State Infrastructure Development Corporation for municipal projects. However, coordination between these agencies often produces conflicting priorities and jurisdictional disputes.


The termination of the HRIDAY scheme in March 2019 without expansion to additional cities highlighted the limitations of the pilot approach. No new projects or cities were included after this date, effectively ending the programme before it could address heritage conservation needs in cities like Nagpur.


Heritage components were subsequently transferred to the National Mission on Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spiritual, Heritage Augmentation Drive under the Ministry of Tourism, creating further fragmentation in heritage development policy.


Documentation efforts represent positive developments but remain limited by implementation challenges. The Heritage Conservation Committee collaboration with Smt. Manoramabai Mundle College of Architecture has produced maintenance manuals for heritage structures, including the Nagpur High Court and initiated heritage catalogues for the city's 155 listed structures.


These documentation initiatives provide a foundation for conservation work, but their practical impact remains constrained by funding shortfalls and coordination difficulties.


State government announcements for heritage development frequently lack follow-through mechanisms.


The Maharashtra government's Rs 893 crore development plan for temples across Vidarbha and the recent Rs 91 crore sanctioned for Lonar Lake development represent positive commitments. However, past experience with project delays and funding disbursement problems raises questions about implementation effectiveness without addressing underlying institutional coordination challenges.


Recent developments suggest both opportunities and continuing challenges for heritage urban development in Vidarbha. The state government's announcement of Rs 45.87 crore for temple development and exploration of Corporate Social Responsibility funding approaches for Zero Mile redevelopment indicates alternative financing mechanisms may emerge.


The Heritage Conservation Committee continues approving projects, including the Nagpur Municipal Corporation Town Hall renovation and Kasturchand Park structural repairs.

However, fundamental challenges remain unresolved.


The Maha Vista project allocation of over Rs 1,000 crore for Nagpur's Vidhan Bhavan expansion contrasts sharply with funding shortfalls for heritage conservation and basic infrastructure needs across Vidarbha.


This resource allocation pattern reflects broader priorities that favour government infrastructure over cultural heritage preservation and citizen services.

Tourism potential in Vidarbha remains significantly underutilised despite the region's cultural wealth. The area contains 45 distinct tribal communities, with Gond artwork gaining national recognition through artists like Bhuri Bai.


Traditional festivals, archaeological sites dating to the 5th century CE, and heritage crafts like Karvati sarees provide authentic cultural experiences, yet infrastructure development and marketing support remain inadequate.


The experience of heritage urban development in Nagpur and broader Vidarbha reflects national patterns of ambitious planning constrained by institutional limitations and funding shortfalls. While initiatives continue at the municipal and state levels, the fundamental challenges of multi-agency coordination, adequate financing, and effective implementation mechanisms persist.


Without addressing these underlying structural issues, future heritage development projects in Vidarbha are likely to encounter similar patterns of partial implementation and unrealised potential that have characterised past efforts in the region.


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