Hyderabad: The Telangana minority welfare department has directed the heritage department of the state to complete the conservation work at Mecca Masjid before the commencement of Ramzan.
The restoration of the 17th-century mosque began in 2017 and is still ongoing. The authorities had set a deadline of 18 months for the work to be finished, but owing to a variety of factors, only half of the work has been successfully done so far.
The Telangana state government had set up roughly Rs 8 crore for the project and had invited bidders from reputable businesses that specialise in cultural structure restoration. Despite the fact that two Mumbai-based businesses had joined the conservation efforts, one firm withdrew owing to implementation concerns, according to Minority Welfare Department officials.
The Telangana state department of heritage is overseeing the conservation efforts and working with local authorities from the minority welfare department, the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC), and other organisations.
The conservation work on the ‘maqbara,’ which houses the royal family members’ tombs, has been completed, but work on the mosque’s main hall is yet to be completed. Last year, the repairs of the main entrance and the gateway were also completed.
According to an official from Telangana Waqf Board, the construction has been dragging on for the previous four years owing to numerous concerns such as inconsistency among contractors, lack of money, and finally the COVID-19 lockdown which slowed development even further.
Officials from the minority welfare department met with the minister for minority affairs Koppula Eshwar a few days ago to discuss the Mecca Masjid conservation works. The minister had requested that the departments involved pick up momentum.
