Maharashtra Police Headquarters

Maharashtra Police Headquarters ,is a Grade I listed UNESCO World Heritage Site in South Mumbai that was built between 1872 and 1876, and designed by the British architect Frederick William Stevens, who also designed the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus.[1] The building is often confused with Mumbai Police Headquarters, also built in Gothic Revival style, and several newspapers often carry the image of Maharashtra headquarters while reporting on the latter.[2][3] The headquarters are located at Shyamaprasad Mukherjee chowk in Fort, and face the Wellington fountain.[4]

Not to be confused with Mumbai Police Headquarters.

Maharashtra Police Headquarters
The Headquarters Building.
LocationShyamaprasad Mukherjee Chowk, Lion Gate
Coordinates18°55′31″N 72°50′00″E
AreaFort, Mumbai
Built1876
Architectural style(s)Gothic Revival, Venetian Gothic
Location of Maharashtra Police Headquarters in Mumbai
Maharashtra Police Headquarters (India)

It was a recuperation centre for sick European sailors, and provided accommodation for 20 officers and about 100 seamen. After 1928, it served as the Legislative Assembly and then the Mumbai Council Hall until 1982, when the Maharashtra Police moved into the building.

History

The historic structure was built at the height of maritime trade in Mumbai, which had become a busy port. It was designed by Frederick William Stevens, an engineer with the Indian Public Works Department. It could accommodate 20 officers and 100 sea men.[5] The Maharaja of Baroda Khanderao II Gaekwad contributed ₹2,00,000 towards the construction of the building.[6]

The building was Stevens's first important commission in the city and he was supervised by James Augustus Fuller.[7] His efforts were described as "an early attempt to infuse Gothic architecture with Muslim nuances".[1] It was acquired by the Government of India in 1928 from the Committee of Royal Alfred Sailors' Home.[8] It then served as the Legislative Assembly and the Mumbai Council Hall, until the new council hall was built in 1982.[9] Following the departure, Maharashtra Police moved into the building and currently occupies the site.[9]

Architecture

The building was constructed using blue basalt, specifically the Kurla stone, in contrast to the Mumbai Police Headquarters that used yellow basalt some two decades later in 1896. Red Mangalore tiles were used for the roof. John Lockwood Kipling [father of the novelist Rudyard Kipling], who was then the principal of Sir Jamsetjee Jeejebhoy School of Art, worked on the capitals and cornices.[1] He supervised the students of the college who also worked on the sculptures.[9]

The sculptures were done in Bath stone by the English sculptor Richard Lockwood Boulton of Cheltenham. The pediment has sculptures of the Roman god of water and the sea, Neptune, nymphs, sea horses, and waves that recall the building's proximity to the Arabian Sea.[1] Discussing the charitable institution of the Sailors' Home in an essay in the book Bombay Before Mumbai: Essays in Honour of Jim Masselos, historian Preeti Chopra writes, "Even in the context of port architecture, Mumbai's Sailors' Home looked as a "rather luxurious hotel" with large airy rooms and bathrooms."[6]

References
  1. "(Former) Royal Alfred Sailors' Home, Bombay, by Frederick William Stevens (1847-1900)". www.victorianweb.org.
  2. "Mumbai Police's over 100-yr-old office set for a facelift". 1 November 2017 – via The Economic Times.
  3. "Mumbai Police to soon get its own museum". Deccan Herald. 11 May 2018.
  4. Michell, George (1 May 2013). Southern India: A Guide to Monuments Sites & Museums. Roli Books Private Limited. ISBN 9788174369031 – via Google Books.
  5. "A gaze at FW Stevens' Gothic landmark in Colaba". mid-day. 12 November 2016.
  6. Kidambi, Prashant; Kamat, Manjiri; Dwyer, Rachel (20 October 2019). Bombay before Mumbai: Essays in Honour of Jim Masselos. Penguin Random House India Private Limited. ISBN 9789353056650 – via Google Books.
  7. Curl, James Stevens; Wilson, Susan (6 July 2015). The Oxford Dictionary of Architecture. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780199674985 – via Google Books.
  8. Bombay Civic Journal, Volume 11 p.16: "...they had received from the Royal Alfred Sailors' Home out of the sale proceeds of the later's premises to the Government."
  9. MumbaiAugust 8, Press Trust of India; August 8, 2019UPDATED; Ist, 2019 12:53. "Maharashtra police headquarters set for Rs 17 crore facelift". India Today.CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
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