Shimla: Gorton Castle

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Gorton Castle, Shimla

This is a collection of articles archived for the excellence of their content.

Re-building the heritage building

The Times of India

May 25 2015

CAG treads new path, to rebuild heritage building from the ashes

Pradeep Thakur

The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) is engaged in a project of a different kind. It is overseeing the restoration of a heritage building on Mall road in Shimla, Gorton Castle, which once served as the summer secretariat of the Viceroy . The government's official auditor is its current occupant. The building was severely damaged in a fire in January 2014. A post-fire assessment showed that 60 rooms of the 148-room castle were completely gutted. The heritage cell of the Union urban development ministry and the Central Building Research Institute, Roorkee, have drawn up a restoration plan that will cost the exchequer close to Rs 55 crore.

CAG Shashi Kant Shar ma has been taking keen interest in the restoration of the 19th-century heritage structure which is a major tourist attraction. He has approved the restoration work, which is likely to begin soon. It will be completed within 30 months.

The castle, built in the neo-Gothic style, was designed by British architect Sir Swinton Jacob, who also designed the Albert Hall (Jaipur), Lalgarh Palace (Bikaner), Umaid Bhawan Palace (Kota), King George Medical College (Lucknow) and St Stephen's College (Delhi).

Sir Swinton is known for `fusion architecture' where he introduced traditional Rajasthani stone jalis, jharokhas and balconies in his buildings. This was best visible in Gorton Castle, a fourstoreyed structure built with sandstone from the local quarry in Sanjauli. The stone masonry walls were constructed with lime mortar which could withstand major earthquakes.

The second and third floors of the castle, which were completely gutted, had wooden flooring over steel girder. Stone ornamental jharokhas, brackets and arches are some of the unique features of the castle that depict fusion architecture.

Gorton Castle was named after a British bureaucrat who served in India and owned it in the 1840s.This was later purchased by the British India government for Rs 1,20,000 after the then viceroy , Lord Ripon, wanted to convert this building into the civil secretariat of the government of India.