3^rd phase of Restoration of Government Girls’ Senior Secondary School, Udaipur by Maharana of Mewar Charitable Foundation, The City Palace, Udaipur

 Maharana of Mewar Charitable Foundation , The City Palace, Udaipur is a public charitable trust registered under Rajasthan Public Trust Act 1959. An initiative of the custodian of the House of Mewar for perpetuation of its core values such as service to society and mankind also serves as a ‘temple of inspiration’ for future generations and continues the model of sustainability that is ‘Eternal Mewar’. Operational since 1969, over 300 professionals are engaged in realizing this vision. The Foundation’s current outreach is in the field of academics, eco-management, philanthropic works and heritage conservation & promotion, in partnership with several institutions at state, national and international levels.

The Foundation aims at contributing to a large-scale systematic change with a focus on establishing a center of excellence at Udaipur.

MMCF has taken the responsibility of preserving the remarkable tangible and intangible cultural heritage. This enormous responsibility is fulfilled through a comprehensive and informed set of initiatives. These include the maintenance and continued development of the City Palace Museum and the other projects preserving local culture through the celebration of festivals in the traditional manner, documenting and researching cultural practices and creating forums for knowledge transfer . All this is made particularly challenging because of a lack of good cultural preservation practice in India, making it necessary to develop suitable systems and methodologies before they can be implemented.

Government Girls’ Senior Secondary School

Formerly known as H.H. The Maharana Girls High School, Jagdish Chowk, Udaipur was constructed during the reign of Maharana Shambhu Singh, the 71st Custodian of The House of Mewar (r. 1861 – 1874 AD). The school was established by Maharana Shambhu Singh in 1864 AD at Jagdish Chowk, Udaipur.

It is administered by the District Education Officer (Secondary), Udaipur under the Directorate of Education, Government of Rajasthan, Bikaner. Presently 500 girls are studying in the school from Class IX to XII. The school has celebrated its 150^thanniversary in the year 2014.

Envisioned Restoration

The restoration and renovation of school building is being undertaken under the project titled ‘Education in Udaipur’ initiated by Maharana of Mewar Charitable Foundation, Udaipur.

On request from the School Authorities, given the historic relationship between the School and the House of Mewar, Shriji Arvind Singh Mewar of Udaipur, Chairman and Managing Trustee of MMCF and the 76^th Custodian of the House of Mewar, decided to take on the restoration and renovation project of the school which has been undertaken to be done in 3 phases.

In 1^st phase MMCF completed restoration and renovation of outer façade and two classrooms of the Government Girls’ Senior Secondary School in January 2015 at a cost of Rs. 33 lakhs. For the same MMCF received the Bhamashah Award from Government of Rajasthan.

2^nd phase of restoration and renovation which includes the first floor hall, four classrooms and two laboratories of the school building was completed in October 2016 and total cost of the project was 30 lakhs.

In the 3rd phase during this year the ground floor consisting of 6 classrooms, toilets of the school building and entrance ramps was commenced in May 2016 and completed in July 2016 and the total cost of the project was 35 lakhs.

The restoration carried out by experienced conservation professionals, well qualified and experienced site supervisors, traditional master craftsmen, skilled workers with proper plans.