The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has finalised three designs for the proposed national monument at Bhide Wada, the site of the first school for girls in the country established by social reformers Mahatma Jyotiba Phule and his wife Savitribai Phule with eight students in 1848.
"Various aspects related to the monument have been considered before finalising the designs. The designs aim to highlight the social reformers’ work and the historical significance of the first girls’ school in the country," Vikas Dhakane, additional commissioner, PMC said. "We will be submitting three designs from three different architects to the PMC commissioner. A final decision will be made and the work of the national memorial will start," he added.
Before demolition | Anand Chaini
After demolition | Anand Chaini
As per the PMC’s blueprint, the memorial will feature a statue of Savitribai Phule and span across a two-storey building, covering an area of 6,212 sqft. The memorial plans include seven rooms, including a representative classroom. PMC intends to recreate the classroom environment to offer visitors an immersive experience of the era when the first women’s school was established by the Phules. Alongside these features, the monument will also house a library, reading room, and headmaster’s room, as reported by TOI.
PMC razes dilapidated Bhide Wada
A month after court orders, the PMC in the early hours of Tuesday razed the dilapidated structure of Bhide Wada.
Local people and traders had refused to vacate the place and moved court.
The Bombay High Court and the Supreme Court recently cleared the way for the PMC to build the national memorial at the site and ordered shop owners and tenants at the dilapidated structure to vacate the premises.
"The structure, spread over more than 2,700 sq ft, was razed in the early hours of Tuesday. The court had given the tenants and shopkeepers a month's time, which ended on December 2," Dhakne said.
"On December 4, they were again issued the notices and at midnight, forceful eviction action was carried out and the structure, which was dilapidated, was razed," he added.
A large police force was deployed in the area as the civic body moved to raze the structure. It was completely demolished sometime after midnight.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone 1) Sandip Singh Gill said since the PMC did not get possession of the property despite issuing notices to the tenants and shop owners, it had written to the police for security personnel to be deployed during the action.
