India News | Vintage Roadroller at Patna Collectorate Likely to Be Shifted to City Museum Tonight
Get latest articles and stories on India at LatestLY. A nearly century-old steamroller manufactured by a British company that lay decrepit in the premises of the Patna Collectorate for several decades may finally be on the road to redemption as the vintage machine is likely to be shifted to the city museum here on late Wednesday night, sources said.
Patna, Aug 24 (PTI) A nearly century-old steamroller manufactured by a British company that lay decrepit in the premises of the Patna Collectorate for several decades may finally be on the road to redemption as the vintage machine is likely to be shifted to the city museum here on late Wednesday night, sources said.
The development comes nearly 40 days after a team of experts from Patna Museum had inspected heritage artifacts at the demolition site of Patna Collectorate with an aim to assess and rescue them accordingly.
The process would be carried out close to midnight on Wednesday night as plying of a hydraulic crane and other such massive machines are restricted during day time in the area surrounding the demolition site of the Collectorate due to the ongoing Patna Metro project work nearby. However, another source said the roadroller "will be shifted tomorrow".
Heritage lovers from various parts of the country on July 19 had appealed to the museum authorities in Bihar to "urgently shift" the antique steam roadroller and other vintage items -- a Dutch-era hanging skylight, vintage safety vault and an old wall clock -- away from the demolition site of the historic Patna Collectorate.
On May 13 this year, the Supreme Court had rejected a plea by heritage body INTACH, which was fighting a legal battle since 2019 to save the historic landmark from demolition, paving the way for the demolition of the Patna Collectorate complex, triggering a wave of grief among heritage lovers in India and abroad.
Patna Museum has shown interest in acquiring some of the rare heritage items that have come out post demolition.
The roadroller, manufactured by John Fowler and Co, Leeds, England has been languishing for decades in an open area in the collectorate complex.
Till recently, its heavy iron wheels lay semi-buried in a pile of earth, and the vintage roadroller's big wheels have finally been dug out and the machine is currently lying on an even surface in the sprawling campus of the Collectorate awaiting rescue and perhaps a new lease of life with restoration by experts.
(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)