Chandni Chowk Town Hall to Become Global Heritage Centre

Chandni Chowk’s historic Town Hall complex is gearing up for a new beginning as the government plans to develop it into a Global Heritage Centre. The Delhi government and Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) signed an MoU that will allow it to conserve the Grade-I heritage property while converting it for museums, cultural activities and tourism purposes. This project will cover the historic Town Hall, Press Building and the adjacent park, which covers an area of about 12,180 square metres and will continue to remain a property of MCD.

Delhi Signs MoU for Town Hall Redevelopment

This MoU was signed between DTTDC and MCD in the presence of Chief Minister Rekha Gupta at Delhi Secretariat on September 20, 2026.

This MoU has been drawn up keeping the twin objective of conserving the heritage property along with ensuring contemporary usage for its public use. It is estimated that this Global Heritage Centre will give Delhi a special attraction for all those people interested in visiting places related to Delhi’s history and architecture.

Rekha Gupta, Chief Minister of Delhi, expressed that the Town Hall is a significant piece of historical and architectural heritage of Delhi and its originality shall be preserved.

Historic Town Hall: Exploring Its History

The Town Hall structure is situated in Shahjahanabad-Chandni Chowk and was built between 1860 and 1866.

The building was used for more than five decades as the head office of the Municipal Corporation before shifting its headquarters to the Dr S.P. Mukherjee Civic Centre in 2010.

Since then, the majority of the structure has been lying idle due to which a conservation and adaptive use project is necessary.

Global Heritage Centre: What Would It Contain?

The proposed development would be carried out according to the concept of adaptive reuse. In other words, the historic structure will be allotted a new role without changing its architectural value.

The following elements may form the centre,

• Museum
• Facilities for culture
• Tourism-related activities

Its location near Chandni Chowk and Old Delhi Railway Station further makes the centre suitable for heritage tourism.

Development Plan for the Project

According to the memorandum of agreement, DTTDC shall undertake survey and assessment of the structures before preparing a Detailed Project Report (DPR).

Then the government of Delhi shall consider whether the project shall be carried out with public money or as a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) project.

Also, a Joint Working Group, comprising members from both the DTTDC and MCD, will be formed to oversee the project development.