The Mumbai Heritage Conservation Committee (MHCC) has come down heavily on the railway authorities for allowing restoration and repair work at the iconic Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST) in violation of heritage guidelines.

In a letter to senior railway officials last week, the panel claimed that they had not sought their permission for certain works. Besides, inappropriate material was used at various locations as was evident during a recent inspection. "Mandatory permission for flooring work and repairs inside an eatery has not been taken. Other works__including the material being used__at some places is not in accordance with the aesthetics of the building,'' the letter states.

Restoration work on the neo-Gothic building began in December 2006, two years after CST was granted the World Heritage Site status by Unesco. While the first phase of the project is over, the second__at a cost of Rs 2.5 crore__is currently underway.

However, the heritage committee stated that the additions and alterations being conducted are not in harmony with the heritage value of the site. "It is disappointing to know that railway officials don't value the fact that it took almost 10 years for the restoration project to take off. It was first mooted in 1997,'' a panel member said in the meeting held last week. "It is quite possible that the railway officials and contractors involved are not aware of the iconic stature and value of this structure, designed and built by architect F W Stevens, who personally supervised the building,'' said Dinesh Afzulpurkar, chairman of MHCC, in his letter.

Chetan Raikar of Structwell Designers, project consultants, said the work under question is being conducted by the railways. "This letter is not concerning our work, the railways is doing it on its own,'' he said. The firm has completed the first phase, which includes the waterproofing of terraces and replacing the old broken Mangalore tiles. The second phase includes stone conservation and external repairs, Raikar said.