Vidhana Soudha () in

Bangalore Bangalore (), List of renamed places in India, officially Bengaluru (), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan area, metropolitan population of a ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, is the seat of the state legislature of Karnataka. It is constructed in a style described as '' Neo-Dravidian'', and incorporates elements of various Dravidian styles. Construction was started in 1952 and completed in 1956.

History

The two houses of legislature of the

princely state of Mysore The Kingdom of Mysore was a realm in South India, southern India, traditionally believed to have been founded in 1399 in the vicinity of the modern city of Mysore. From 1799 until 1950, it was a princely state, until 1947 in a subsidiary allia ...

, the legislative assembly and the legislative council, were established in 1881 and 1907 respectively. Sessions of the two houses took place in Mysore (with joint sessions taking place in the

Bangalore Town Hall Sir K. P. Puttanna Chetty Town Hall, locally commonly referred to as Bangalore Town Hall, is a neoclassical municipal building in Bangalore, India, named after the philanthropist and former president of Bangalore City Municipality, Sir K.P P ...

) until India's independence from British rule on 15 August 1947, when Mysore acceded to India. The state's capital was shifted to Bangalore; the two houses moved into

Attara Kacheri Attara Kacheri in Bangalore, India is the seat of the principal bench of the Karnataka High Court, the highest judicial authority in the state of Karnataka. It is a neoclassical red-painted stone and brick building in Cubbon Park, located on ...

, a British-built building in

Cubbon Park Cubbon Park, officially known as ''Sri Chamarajendra Park'', is a landmark 'lung' area of Bengaluru city, located () within the heart of the city in the Central Administrative Area. Originally created in 1870 under Major General Richard Sanke ...

that housed the High Court of Mysore. A need was felt for more spacious quarters for the legislature than Attara Kacheri, and in April 1951. The foundation stone of the building was laid by

Jawaharlal Nehru Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru (; ; ; 14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat— * * * * and author who was a central figure in India during the middle of the 20t ...

, the first Prime Minister of India, on 13 July 1951. The structure was planned to be a two-storeyed building housing the assembly and the council.

Kengal Hanumanthaiah Kengal Hanumanthaiah (14 February 1908 – 1 December 1980), also spelt as Kengal Hanumanthaiya, was the second Chief Minister of Karnataka (then, Mysore State) from 30 March 1952 to 19 August 1956. He contributed to the construction of Vidhana ...

succeeded as Chief Minister after the 1952 election in the state. Calling the existing plan a "plain and simple type of American architecture", Hanumanthaiah ordered extensive revisions to produce "a work of art in keeping with the tradition of Mysore State". Apart from house chambers, the revised plan included government offices, archives, a library and a banquet hall. Construction of the building was completed in 1956. Hanumanthiah personally supervised and ordered several particular aspects of the construction; one of them was to inscribe "Government Work Is God's Work" and its Kannada equivalent on the entablature of the front facade. The final design was meant to dwarf the British-built

, currently the seat of the

Karnataka High Court Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...

, opposite which Vidhana Soudha was being built.

Cost

Estimates of construction costs for the original two-storied structure stood at 33 lakh (3.3 million)

rupees Rupee is the common name for the currencies of India, Mauritius, Nepal, Pakistan, Seychelles, and Sri Lanka, and of former currencies of Afghanistan, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, the United Arab Emirates (as the Gulf rupee), British East Africa, B ...

. The final cost of construction of the redesigned building was 180 lakh (18 million) rupees. Hanumanthaiah was criticised for the inflated sum - equivalent to ₹170 crore, or in 2019 - spent on construction.

Architecture

Built with granite, Vidhana Soudha is the largest legislative building in India. It measures on the ground and is tall. The architecture includes elements of styles from the mediaeval

Chalukya The Chalukya dynasty () was a Classical Indian dynasty that ruled large parts of southern and central India between the 6th and the 12th centuries. During this period, they ruled as three related yet individual dynasties. The earliest dynasty ...

Hoysala The Hoysala Empire was a Kannadiga power originating from the Indian subcontinent that ruled most of what is now Karnataka between the 10th and the 14th centuries. The capital of the Hoysalas was initially located at Belur, but was later moved ...

and

Vijayanagara Vijayanagara () was the capital city of the historic Vijayanagara Empire. Located on the banks of the Tungabhadra River, it spread over a large area and included the modern era Group of Monuments at Hampi site in Vijayanagara district, Bell ...

empires of Karnataka. Its east-facing front facade has a porch with 12 granite columns, tall. Leading to the porch is a flight of stairs with 45 steps, more than wide. The central dome, in diameter, is crowned by a likeness of the State Emblem of India. The phrase "Government Work is God's Work" and its Kannada equivalent "''Sarkarada kelasa devara kelasa''" (in Kannada script as "ಸರ್ಕಾರದ ಕೆಲಸ ದೇವರ ಕೆಲಸ") are inscribed on the entablature. In 1957, the Mysore government planned to replace the inscription with '' Satyameva Jayate'' at a cost of , but the change did not take place. In 1996, the inscription inspired a visiting US state governor, George Voinovich of

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

, to propose etching "

With God, all things are possible With God, all things are possible is the motto of the U.S. state of Ohio. Quoted from the Gospel of Matthew, verse , it is the only List of U.S. state and territory mottos, state motto taken directly from the Bible (, ''para de Theō panta dynata ...

" onto the

Ohio Statehouse The Ohio Statehouse is the state capitol building and seat of government for the U.S. state of Ohio. The Greek Revival building is located on Capitol Square in Downtown Columbus. The capitol houses the Ohio General Assembly, consisting of the H ...

, prompting a high-profile lawsuit. The cost of construction at that time wasc . Currently, annual maintenance cost is more than including repairs, painting, and other miscellaneous expenses.

Replicas

Vikasa Soudha

The Karnataka government constructed a replica named ''Vikasa Soudha'' to the south of the building. Initiated by the then Chief Minister S. M. Krishna and inaugurated in February 2005, it is intended to be an annexe building, housing some of the ministries and legislative offices.

Suvarna Vidhana Soudha

The Suvarna Vidhana Soudha () is the legislature building of the State of Karnataka in Belgaum in the Belgaum district of

Northern Karnataka North Karnataka is a geographical region in Deccan plateau from elevation that constitutes the region of the Karnataka state in India and the region consists of 13 districts. It is drained by the Krishna River and its tributaries the Bhi ...

. It was inaugurated on 11 October 2012 by

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Pranab Mukherjee Dr. Pranab Mukherjee (11 December 193531 August 2020) was an Indian politician and statesman who served as the 13th president of India from 2012 until 2017. In a political career spanning five decades, Mukherjee was a senior leader in the India ...

Location

It is located on Ambedkar Veedhi or Dr Ambedkar Rd, Seshadripuram. Across from Vidhana Soudha is the High Court of Karnataka. Both buildings are in

, which is located near the Karnataka State Lawn Tennis Association (KSLTA).

References

External links

Vidhana Soudha

vidhanasoudha.com
{{Bangalore topics Government buildings completed in 1956 Buildings and structures in Bangalore Legislative buildings in India Tourist attractions in Bangalore Karnataka Legislature