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KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 29): Many are relieved to hear that the 110-year old Vivekananda Ashram in Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur, will be gazetted as a national heritage site.
G. Gunasegaran, Save Vivekananda Ashram Brickfields committee chairman, is elated.
“We thank Tourism and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz, Federal Territories Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Mansor and the heritage commissioner Dr Zainah Ibrahim for listening to the people.”
Gunasegaran also thanked those who had supported the cause to save the ashram.
“Now we must see how we can improve the site to become a cultural and education hub,” he said.
He voiced hope that the ashram’s trustees would open the ashram for membership so that more can take part in the effort to improve it, while urging big companies in the area to also step forward to help.
“We want to engage all the stakeholders so that we can work together to make Brickfields a better place to live and work in.”
Brickfields Community Society secretary and longtime Brickfields resident Dr Christopher Nicholas said now was the time to move forward.
“We need to work with the trustees to restore the Vivekananda Ashram to its former glory and ensure that the ashram returns to serving its original purpose.”
Brickfields Rukun Tetangga chairman S.K.K. Naidu thanked the government and urged that it did not stop at gazetting only the ashram.
“Vivekananda Ashram is one of the oldest buildings in Brickfields. Hopefully, the government will look at gazetting other historical sites as heritage sites, not only in Brickfields but throughout the country as well,” he said.
Malaysian Resources Corporation Bhd (MRCB) said in a statement that the gazetting of the ashram would not affect its development plans on the former 100 Quarters site as the plans complied with the National Heritage Act 2005.
"Nevertheless, MRCB endeavours to continue to ensure that work on 100 Quarters does not impact the Vivekananda Ashram and the surrounding developments."
"We will continue to engage with all stakeholders to allay any concerns," the statement read.
The Malaysian Insider yesterday reported that the Vivekananda Ashram would be gazetted as a national heritage site after its owners’ appeal to the Tourism and Culture Ministry were rejected.
Nazri said the heritage commissioner had decided on July 15 to gazette the ashram as a national heritage site in accordance with the provisions of the National Heritage Act.
He said the decision was final and no more appeals would be entertained or allowed in court.
The government had previously wished to gazette the 110-year-old building as a heritage site, but the proposal was twice rejected by the ashram’s board of trustees. -- The Malaysian Insider
