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dr-sanghamitra-basuIIT-KGP Prof. Sanghamitra Basu ('04), helping fix century-old flaw in Victoria Memorial Hall (VMH)

The Times of India (July 26, 2019)

KOLKATA: A possible oversight during the construction of Victoria Memorial Hall (VMH), built nearly a century ago, is set to be corrected this winter with the authorities deciding to incorporate weep holes in a wall that was designed to camouflage the 12ft tall cement-concrete foundation on which the edifice stands. The decision follows the tilting of the marble wall along the Eastern Quadrangle.

"The peripheral wall to the east of the platform has tilted away from the building by an inch and a half. Though this does not pose any threat to VMH as the walls are built for aesthetics and don't bear any load, it has to be dismantled and rebuilt. While doing so, weep holes will be created so that water that seeps into the earth and sand packed between the foundation and this wall can trickle out. In the absence of weep holes, the water's outward thrust has led to the wall deformity," said VMH curator Jayanta Sengupta. (Read More)