Tamilnadu new assembly building

Chennai: Bangalore firm Geodesic will be constructing the dome for the new Tamil Nadu Assembly building coming up in the Omandurar Government Estate. According to sources, the contract was awarded to the firm, which has a vast experience in constructing domes, late last month.

The dome will roof the Assembly hall alone and will be 30 m tall and 45 m in diameter. The fins of the dome will be cladded with granite and the lamellas with aluminum sheet. They will be held together with steel. The arhitects, GMP International of Germany, plan to project the dome as a modern reinterpretation of the thatched archaic temples typical of south India.

With the awarding of the contract for the construction of the dome, the Rs 425-cr project now moves to its final phase. The official date of completion is exactly three and a half months away, and the Public Works Department and the contractors and the architects are working overtime to make sure that at least the Assembly hall and the chief minister’s chamber are ready by March 31 next year.

On Thursday, work will also begin for construction of Block B or the Secretariat complex (Block A being the Assembly complex) with the ‘ground-breaking’ ceremony. Demolition of buildings is going on to make way for the Rs 272-cr project which will comprise seven blocks of sixstoreyed buildings. So far, the site has been cleared for construction of three blocks. Among the buildings awaiting demolition include the offices of the Tamil Nadu Public Services Commission, which will vacate the premises by the first week of January. The Secretariat project will be executed by Pune-based Vascon Engineers, while the Assembly complex is being built by East Coast Constructions and Industries Ltd.

To match the appearance of the Secretariat with the new Assembly complex, a special type of granite, sapphire blue, will be used to furnish the exterior of the seven blocks. The construction is expected to be completed in 15 months. An elevated corridor will connect the Assembly and the Secretariat complexes.

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