By Mohan Kayaka          

One of Dubai’s remarkable features is its meticulously designed road network, ensuring the smooth flow of traffic and prioritising safety. The city’s modern highways are equipped with state-of-the-art technology, implemented to maintain efficient traffic management.

Cutting-edge construction materials and techniques have been employed to create robust and durable infrastructure, guaranteeing the longevity and sustainability of the roadways. One might wonder why the mention of Dubai is pertinent here. The junction near Al-Badr Mosque in Rajiv Nagar Second Stage has been redeveloped on the lines of Dubai landmarks and now stands as one of the best and well-designed junctions in the Heritage City of Mysuru.

Mysuru already boasts of iconic circles like Chamarajendra Wadiyar Circle, Krishnaraja Wadiyar Circle and Jayachamaraja Wadiyar Circle. These well-planned and aesthetically pleasing junctions were the vision of the Wadiyar Maharajas.

In recent times, other junctions have been developed in areas such as Saraswathipuram, Kuvempunagar, Vivekanandanagar, Ramakrishnanagar and Sharadadevinagar.

Developed at a cost of Rs. 2.47 crore, the Al-Badr Junction, with a huge kettle at the centre is attracting eyeballs, especially after dark when the entire junction is illuminated. People are coming in hordes every day to get a ‘Dubai feel’ of the location and the photos and videos of the landmark circle have gone viral on social media.

The junction features a 8.25 mts-tall decorative kettle at its centre, elevated on a pedestal, and surrounded by a pool and fountains. Ornamental plants and trees have been meticulously planted symmetrically to enhance the aesthetics of the surroundings. Haseeb ur Rahman from Teamwork Architects based in Bengaluru provided his expertise for the Circle.

Artistic kettle

The 3,900 square-metre Al-Badr Circle (including road, footpath and the Circle area) has been efficiently utilised. The kettle stands at a height of 13.70 metres including the base. Flower pots, fountains, interlocking tiles pathway, impressive lightings that are beamed on the kettle, all create a magical atmosphere.

Over 14 decorative lamps in heritage style have been erected around the kettle and the circle area and palm trees that were brought from Coimbatore have been planted and being maintained around the Circle. Glass-reinforced polymer material has been used so that the kettle will remain shining and for it to brave the vagaries of weather.

An impressive lighting system has been implemented where dynamic RGBW (red, green, blue and white) lighting will be beamed on the kettle through DMX network — DMX (Digital Multiplex) is a digital network communication standard, most commonly used in the lighting world, to control lighting equipment such as dimmers, moving heads and effects devices such as fog machines).

Customised lighting

Interestingly, the Circle and its lighting have also been customised to reflect the mood of the nation, adapting to various themes such as the Tricolour on Independence Day and Republic Day. Multiple themes have been customised on the lines of the lighting at Dubai’s Burj Khalifa, Mysuru City Corporation (MCC) Assistant Executive Engineer Shivakumar told Star of Mysore.

MCC officers said that while redesigning the junction, enough care has been taken to ensure that not a single underground drainage, sewage line, water line telephone and electricity line passes through. This is to ensure that there will be no digging at any point in the future. Natural cobblestone (natural building material based on cobble-sized stones) has been used to beautify the junction and concrete has been used to fix them into their places.

Arranging funds

Despite the design being ready in 2019, the project faced numerous hurdles that prevented its execution, primarily due to insufficient funds. The redevelopment of the Circle was launched on July 25, 2022 by Narasimharaja MLA Tanveer Sait.

Of the total Rs. 2.47 crore funding, Rs. 37.14 lakh was provided under 14th Finance Plan (2017-18), Rs. 9.97 lakh in 2018-19, Rs. 80 lakh under 15th Finance Plan (2020-21), Rs. 40 lakh as additional grants under 14th Finance plan and Rs. 80 lakh as SFC Special Grant.

As part of the redevelopment project and to promote eco-friendly transportation, bicycle parking spaces have been provided, and seating arrangements have been made for citizens to relax and appreciate the junction’s beauty.

Adjacent to the junction, a park already exists, showcasing replicas of various animals and serving as an additional attraction. Free Wi-Fi will be provided for one or two hours for all those who visit the junction for site-seeing and business purposes. The project has been executed by H.S. Swamigowda, said MCC Executive Engineer A.S. Ranjit Kumar.

A captivating landmark

The project is a brainchild of former Mayor Ayub Khan who is the current Corporator of Ward 13. He expressed his happiness over the completion of the project and said that it has been his long-standing dream.

“I wanted to transform the expansive space spanning at Al-Badr Circle into a modern and innovative masterpiece. It will be inaugurated by Chief Minister Siddharamaiah soon. Since Independence, Mysuru has not witnessed significant additions to its list of tourist attractions with most of them being contributions from the Maharajas. I wanted to create a captivating landmark that will attract both residents and tourists, representing the spirit of our times,” he said.

Notably, the redesigned and beautified junction will contribute to boosting local business and commerce. Ayub Khan acknowledged the support of neighbouring Ward Corporators, including former Deputy Mayor Anwar Baig (Aftab) and former Mayor Pushpalatha Jagannath.

TECHNICAL DETAILS

• Total area of the entire circle – 3,900 sq.mts (including road, footpath, circle area).
• Area of main circle – 380 sq.mts.
• Total height of circle from base – 13.70 mts.
• Height of kettle – 8.25 mts.
• Number of trees – 22 palm trees.
• Number of streetlights – 14 (cast iron-based MS decorative poles with lights).
• Material used for road – RCC concrete & natural cobblestone.
• Material used for kettle – GRP (glass reinforced polymer).
• Lighting – Dynamic RGBW facade lighting, customized design with IP65 & IP67 rated RGBW Lights controlled through DMX network to create multiple themes and colour patterns having 16 million colour shades to enhance beauty.
• Customised spike lights in the garden area.