Even after unearthing of two cannons believed to be from Tipu Sultan’s artillery, Tipu’s Summer Palace wears a deserted look.
While the discovery of two cannons, possibly part of Tipu Sultan’s artillery, at the Metro Site in KR Market has created a buzz among historians, archaeologists and the media; the general public seems uninterested.
The discovery has hardly created any increase in the flow of tourists to Tipu Sultan's Summer Palace, located a few metres away from the site of discovery.
On Saturday morning, the halls of the palace wore a deserted look and only a handful of visitors were seen. One of the workers at the palace said he was not surprised by the lack of interest. “This is what you would expect on a holiday weekend around here. The numbers would pick up by evening. but even during Diwali holidays we didn’t see much of increase in the visitors.
"To be honest, I don’t think the discovery of the cannons will generate interest and drive in tourists. In fact even if they build another palace, the numbers will not increase,” he remarked dryly.
Radhika Tawar, who was at the palace with her husband and two children, said she had no idea about the discovery and was neither interested.
“We are here as part of sightseeing, since it is a weekend,” she said. Rajshekar Mane, who came with his family from Jayanagar, said that he had planned to visit the palace in advance and the uncovering of the cannons was a happy coincidence. “I read about it in the newspapers but I wanted to come here before that. I think people in Bangalore should be more conscious of their history and understand its importance,” he said.
Mane also said that the cannons should be transferred to the palace, so that visitors can have a look.
“Right now the palace is quite bare and it could be a reason for low turnout of visitors. But once the cannons are placed here, it might draw more visitors,” he added.
Manjunath, a palace employee, said the fate of the cannons should be decided by the Union government.
“On weekends we actually get about 2,000 visitors, but I believe that places like this should be given more importance by the public and they should visit more often. However, whether or not the cannons should be placed here is up to the central government to decide,” he said.
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