Belagavi: A historic clock tower that dates back to 1906 and is one of the oldest structures raised during the British period is all set to be demolished in Belgavi city under the ongoing Master Plan project.
The clock tower building owned by Pioneer Urban Bank is located at Kalmath Road and has a rich history. With the countdown for its demolition beginning, several prominent citizens and the management committee of the bank have appealed to the government not to demolish it.
According to available records, the clock atop the 119-year-old tower was installed in 1938 by a UK-based company when Bheemrao Potdar was president of the Pioneer Urban Bank. A Mumbai-based electric clock company fixed the clock atop the tower and later several other buildings were constructed attached to the tower in 1940. For several decades after the clock was fixed, sources said, the ringing of the clock bell could be heard upto a distance 5 km away. For people in most parts of Belagavi, the ringing of the bell would decide their routine work.
A resident of Kalmath Road, Pravin Patil says people living in the heart of Belagavi are emotionally attached to the clock tower and would want the government to preserve it. Sources said the maintenance of the clock for the past 25 years is being done by a 58-year-old resident of Chikkodi, G P Pattar.
He says England-based John Taylor and Company designed the clock made of bronze, the current market value of the clock is said to be around Rs 25 lakh.
