AMONG THE many attractions of Mumbai, the heritage structures in and around the Fort area, from Crawford Market till Churchgate Station, have consistently drawn tourists. The BMC, in collaboration with the Kala Ghoda Association, will now put a large map of Ward A at Bhatia Baug, just outside the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, showing the locations of over 60 noted heritage structures in the area, to help tourists find their way from one structure to another, without the help of any local guide. Assistant Municipal Commissioner of Ward A Kiran Dighavkar said while the 12 feet long and 8 feet wide map will be constructed at Bhatia Baug, miniature models of the map will be installed at some of the popular locations in the area such as Flora Fountain, Horniman Circle, Kala Ghoda and Jehangir Art Gallery, among others. “Visitors and tourists often face a hard time finding their way around the area. Even when they come across a particular heritage structure, they learn very little about its historical significance. We are currently designing the map and it will include Grade I and Grade II heritage structures,” he said. Apart from installing a large map, the ward officials are also planning to set up information plaques at 64 heritage structures with a uniform look, describing their historical significance. The list of heritage sites include banks such as Deutche Bank, educational institutions like Anjuman-i-Islam School, government offices including the BMC building, courts, the Maharashtra Police headquarters, churches including Bowen Memorial Church as well as other structures like the Taj Palace and Regal Cinema, among others. Considering the heavy rain in the city, the map is likely to be made of engraved steel. Along with the locations of the heritage structure, the map will also contain a QR code and it will connect the user to a mobile application which is being developed by Maneck Davar, chairperson of the Kala Ghoda Association. “This is a very exciting project for us and we hope to promote the importance of heritage structures. A user can be linked to the application by scanning the QR code on the map and tourists can then map their own route from structures like the Crawford Market and the Gateway of India. The application will be very dynamic so that a tourist can design their own route,” he said. Davar said they were considering various other possibilities like giving out information on the history of a specific structure in the form of an audio message. “We are planning to have all audio messages in Hindi, English and Marathi for now. If the need arises, we can include other languages as well and the application will be available on Android and Apple phones,” he said, adding that the aspects of the application were yet to be finalised and it could be further developed depending on the feedback from users. While the application will take at least a month-and-a-half to complete, civic officials said the map’s construction is likely to begin in October. All things considered, by the end of this year, tourists will be able to take customised heritage walks without the need to ask for directions.
