The century-old pyaav in Mumbai city will soon get a new lease of life. The BMC has started a tender process of restoring 18 such pyaavs. These historic structures are drinking water fountains that were built in the city around the 18th and 19th century for humans and some constructed with troughs for horses and cattle.
There are 30 fountains listed with the BMC under Grade-II and Grade-III heritage structures. But over the years, several such pyaavs disappeared underground. So the BMC has been planning the restoration of these fountains for a long time.
BMC to restorre Pyaav
The idea of restoring the pyaavs was first put forward in 2018. A firm known as Vaastu Vidhaan, working for heritage conservation submitted a report to restore 22 pyaavs. The BMC has appointed conservation architect Rahul Chemburkar from Vaastu Vidhaan as consultant for the restoration work. As part of this project, four pyaavs inside the Veermata Jijabai Bhosale Udyan and zoo at Byculla, were restored last year. While the process of reviving 18 pyaavs is under process, said a civic official.
Pyaavs to come back to life
Rahul Chemburkar said, “People from various communities like Parsi, Gujarati, Koli and Agri made these pyaavs in some of the busiest areas of the city. The pyaavs started becoming dormant as water supply became more limited after the 1960s. The idea of restoring the pyaavs is an effort to preserve the historical identity of the city. Information tablets with QR codes will also be set up near the pyaavs so that people can know about the history of these fountains.”
