Tenants love their nook but do little for its upkeep

CHENNAI:

When Haji Khaleel Shirazi left his hometown in Iran to make a life in Madras 100 years ago, he had only his hard work to bank on. He entered the construction business and left his imprint on many city buildings, including Agurchand Mansion, a portion of which caught fire on Thursday. 

The brick-red building with a long verandah and graceful arches was built in the 1930s, says designer Rehane, Shirazi's great-granddaughter. "After his death, the building went to one of his sons, who migrated to Pakistan during the Partition. The property was auctioned by the Indian government as evacuee property," says Rehane. And the Khaleeli Mansion, a twostorey building in the Indo-Saracenic style, was bought by the Agurchand family. 

"It was the first multi-storeyed building to come up on Mount Road," says historian S Muthiah. But, it is a heritage building with scores of tenants, who neither keep common areas clean nor replace old electrical wiring. The mansion has close to 20 tenants. 

Police say the fire might have been caused by an electrical short circuit in one shop. "The shop didn't have enough safety mechanisms though they stored books," says major (retired) G I Pattabiraman, vice-president, Globe Detective Agency. Globe, which occupies four sections, has fire alarms and safety equipment, he says. 

Thirty years ago, the detective agency heads chose the mansion as they wanted a central location. "We wanted to be in a prominent building in the middle of the city," he says. 

Vincent D'Souza, editor of Mylapore Times, who conducts heritage walks, says most old buildings on Anna Salai have tenants who love the location. "But many don't even know the owner and hand over the rent to a supervisor. Authorities don't know who is in charge and this makes conservation difficult," he says. In this case too, many tenants deal with the supervisor and not the owner. 

Pattabiraman says he is aware of the building's heritage value. The owners get it painted every three years and recently repaired a portion of the ceiling that was leaking, he says. "The frontage and elevation have remained the same," he says.