Patna, Aug. 22: Owners of buildings surrounding the Gandhi Maidan would have to illuminate the structures.
For, Bihar State Tourism Development Corporation (BSTDC) has not received a single bid against expression of interest issued for the illumination project. The much-touted scheme of illuminating prominent buildings around the Gandhi Maidan was launched last year.
"The corporation did not receive any bid for providing infrastructure, including LED for illumination for buildings around the Gandhi Maidan. It has been decided that the building owners would have to install the lights on their own and the tourism department would make payments against electricity charges," said a senior BSTDC official.
Initially, BSTDC had planned to get the infrastructure for the proposed lighting, including LED and wires, installed by the selected firm and the department was supposed to make payments against electricity charges for running these lights except for government sector buildings. Total five buildings around Gandhi Maidan ' SK Memorial Hall, State Bank of India, Biscomaun Bhavan, Hotel Maurya and Twin Towers had been selected for LED illumination under the scheme.
Hotel Maurya and Twin Towers on the southern side of Gandhi Maidan are owned by private parties, while SK Memorial, SBI and Biscomaun Bhavan are public sector buildings. The project of illuminating the buildings around Gandhi Maidan was undertaken by BSTDC to promote night tourism in the state capital.
Similar lighting projects were chalked out by the tourism department last year for illuminating all important and historical buildings across 17 ghats of the Ganga through special lighting effects. Some of the buildings included buildings of the East Central Railway in Danapur, collectorate, Bankipur Club, Civil Court, Patna University Buildings facing the river and National Institute of Technology, among others. However, BSTDC officials claimed that work on only two buildings have been completed till date.