Mahafezkhana Gets a Page in GMDA’s Book—But Not in Assam’s Future

Heritage, once erased, cannot be resurrected. The demolition of Guwahati’s historic Mahafezkhana—Assam’s oldest surviving record room—stands as yet another grim reminder of our collective failure to preserve our past. In an act of administrative indifference and cultural vandalism, the Guwahati Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA) has razed to the ground a 19th-century colonial structure that withstood the wrath of two major earthquakes, only to fall prey to modern-day apathy.

A Monument to Bureaucratic Indifference

The Mahafezkhana, constructed between 1855 and 1865, was more than just a building. It was a repository of Assam’s administrative history, safeguarding land records, government orders, and archival documents that chronicled the evolution of governance in the region. Its iron-gated structure, fortified with sal and teak beams, had endured for over 170 years. It was a testament to architectural resilience—until the GMDA’s bulldozers wiped it off the map without warning, without discussion, and without regard.

Ironically, GMDA itself recognized Mahafezkhana’s significance in its recently published coffee table book, which devotes Page 58 to this very structure. The book describes Mahafezkhana as a vital record room, noting its 20-inch thick walls and resilience against the 1897 earthquake. Yet, despite acknowledging its historical importance, GMDA has now reduced it to rubble. The contradiction is staggering—a government that glorifies its heritage on paper while simultaneously erasing it in reality.

In any civilized society, heritage conservation is a priority. Yet, in Assam, history is treated as an inconvenience. There was no public consultation, no heritage assessment, and no attempt to relocate or repurpose the structure. Instead, the government simply decided that history had to make way for ‘development.’ The justification? The extension of a city park—an excuse so feeble that it reeks of deeper malaise.

The Erosion of Assam’s Identity

This is not an isolated incident. Assam’s historical landmarks have routinely been sacrificed at the altar of unchecked urbanization. The Mahafezkhana joins a growing list of obliterated heritage sites that once defined the city’s character. The Koshagar-Khazana, another colonial-era structure, was torn down to make way for a bank. The Barphukanar Tila, an important Ahom-era landmark, has been encroached upon beyond recognition. How many more such erasures before Assam loses its architectural soul completely?

The silence of the state’s cultural custodians is deafening. Where were the historians, the conservationists, the policymakers when this act of destruction was planned? Where was the outcry from institutions tasked with protecting Assam’s history? The Mahafezkhana, despite its evident heritage value, had not even been designated a protected monument. This lack of proactive preservation made it an easy target for a government that sees land as mere real estate, not as a reservoir of history.

 A Future Without Memory?

The demolition of Mahafezkhana is more than just the loss of a building; it is the erasure of a chapter of Assam’s story. If history is memory, then Assam is fast becoming amnesiac. And when a state loses its memory, it loses its identity. Who will be held accountable for this act of cultural destruction? And more importantly, who will prevent the next?

Heritage conservation cannot be an afterthought. It must be an active commitment—one that involves legal protection, civic awareness, and governmental accountability. The time for passive mourning is over. The time for demanding preservation is now.

Guwahati has already lost too much. Let the destruction of Mahafezkhana be the last of its kind, not the prelude to a future where history is bulldozed without a trace.