Chandigarh's Capitol Complex verandah built, plan expedited under UNESCO watch

The Supreme Court-mandated verandah outside Chief Justice’s Courtroom No. 1 in the Punjab and Haryana High Court, which is part of the Le Corbusier-designed UNESCO heritage site, has finally been built.

The verandah, though a small structure, was at the centre of a heated controversy last year, when the Chief Justice insisted that it be built in keeping with his current needs, although Corbusier hadn’t thought it necessary and UNESCO had initially wagged a disapproving finger. Officials from the Le Corbusier Foundation in Paris flew to Chandigarh for a first-hand look. The matter went all the way up to the Supreme Court.

With this work finished, the UT Administration is expediting the long-pending UNESCO-mandated Site and Buffer Zone Management Plan being prepared by the IIT-Roorkee, a document that will decide how every future intervention — from restoration and infrastructure to parking and security upgrades — will proceed in and around Le Corbusier’s 163-acre masterpiece.

The complex, inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2016, is once again drawing global attention as Chandigarh works to demonstrate that a functioning government campus can also serve as a model of modern living heritage management.

Chief Engineer CB Ojha told The Tribune that the Administration was taking its commitments seriously. “We are aligning every step with UNESCO norms. The verandah and green paver works show that functionality and heritage sensitivity can move together. Our priority is to protect the Outstanding Universal Value while meeting daily needs,” he said.

The urgency comes after the 2023 decision of the World Heritage Committee in Riyadh to suspend three major projects — the proposed multi-level underground parking, the holistic development plan for the High Court and the chiller plant installation — over concerns that they could harm the site’s Outstanding Universal Value. The subsequent Heritage Impact Assessments by the IIT-Roorkee in 2024 were equally stark, finding that several expansion proposals would cause major and irreversible damage to the Core Zone and cannot be taken forward. Only the sub-terrain parking behind the Open Hand Monument was found feasible with conditions.

The Engineering Department has since accelerated restoration of the Capitol Complex buildings. Internal restoration of the Punjab and Haryana Assembly is targeted for completion by December 2025 at a cost of Rs 6.23 crore, while restoration of nine courtrooms in the High Court is scheduled through December 2026 for Rs 5.11 crore. Exterior restoration worth Rs 7 crore has already been completed. Green paver installation in the “kutcha” parking, also mandated by the High Court and upheld by the Supreme Court, is underway.

The complex today handles enormous daily pressure: nearly 12,000 employees across the Secretariat, Assembly and High Court; around 5,000 daily visitors to the High Court alone; and 1,300 security personnel on duty. The new plan being finalised will formally map these demands and prescribe how they can be managed without compromising material authenticity or architectural character.

But the physical condition of the complex remains a concern. The IIT-Roorkee’s structural assessments last year revealed widespread deterioration in béton brut surfaces, corrosion of reinforcement, seepage issues, and inadequate structural capacity in several ancillary buildings, calling for systematic retrofitting. Experts caution that modern concrete heritage is far more fragile than traditional stone structures and requires continuous investment, advanced repair techniques and skilled manpower — a challenge India is still scaling up.

The Capitol Complex has seen its share of internal disputes too. The earlier conservation consultant withdrew over disagreements and was later blacklisted, forcing the Administration to restructure oversight and rely more heavily on the Chandigarh Heritage Conservation Committee. UNESCO had warned as early as 2016 that inscription was not an end but a beginning, and that the city must maintain a steady reporting, monitoring and transparent management.

The new management plan attempts precisely that — setting clear zoning rules, protecting visual corridors, defining what can and cannot be built, regulating development pressure around the Complex, and laying out long-term maintenance, visitor management and heritage-compatible solutions for parking, HVAC, security and accessibility. Officials involved in the plan say it will help prevent the kind of ad-hoc decisions that prompted UNESCO’s 2023 suspensions.

Ojha says the goal is long-term stability. “This is not a one-time conservation project. It is a continuous responsibility. With the new plan, we want to move from reactive repairs to a structured and sustainable heritage management framework,” he said.

The stakes remain high: preserving the complex’s global status, ensuring functional continuity for courts and governance, protecting the fragile concrete fabric, and shielding the precinct from development pressures. If implemented as intended, Chandigarh could become a global example of how modern heritage can thrive while continuing to work as a living civic institution. If not, it risks slipping into the category UNESCO has warned against — a celebrated monument struggling to hold itself together.

For now, with the verandah completed and the plan nearing finalisation, the Capitol Complex stands at a decisive moment. The world recognised Le Corbusier’s vision in 2016. What it expects now is stewardship — consistent, disciplined and transparent — to ensure that the complex remains a living legacy rather than a fading accolade.

WHY IT MATTERS

UNESCO scrutiny is real: Non-compliance can lead to warnings, project suspensions or even the site being placed on the “World Heritage in Danger” list.

The Complex is a working institution: With 12,000 staff and 5,000 daily court visitors, decisions must balance live functionality with heritage authenticity.

Concrete is deteriorating: Le Corbusier’s béton brut requires advanced conservation — cracks, seepage and corrosion threaten long-term survival.

Development pressure is rising: High-rises and expansion around the Complex can jeopardise protected visual corridors and core architectural principles.

Chandigarh’s legacy is at stake: The site embodies India’s modernist vision. Missteps could turn a living legacy into a cautionary tale of neglect.

The new management plan is decisive: It will shape how Chandigarh governs, protects and sustains the Complex for decades, making this moment a turning point.

COMMITTED TO PRESERVING WORLD HERITAGE SITE: KATARIA

"The Capitol Complex is not a monument to be frozen in time, it is a living institution of democracy. Its restoration, renovation and upkeep are non-negotiable, and we are committed to preserving this UNESCO World Heritage site in a manner that respects Le Corbusier’s vision, while keeping it fully functional as a living centre of governance — at all costs," said Gulab Chand Kataria, Punjab Governor & UT Administrator