Chowringhee Road: The over 200-year-old Bible House on Chowringhee Road - a Grade I heritage structure - is undergoing repairs for the first time since it opened its door in 1811.

The building, which survived a demolition attempt in 2011, was in a deplorable state with its portico imperilled, roof leaking and iron beams completely rusted. An occasional patchwork is all that it got over the years.

The Calcutta Auxiliary, which functions from the Bible House, had sent a proposal to its parent body, the India Bible Society Trust Association, for restoration of the structure. A tender was floated and architect Manish Chakraborti was appointed as consultant for the restoration work.

The Calcutta Municipal Corporation sanctioned the plan in November 2016 and work started in February. The Calcutta Auxiliary hopes the restoration will be completed by August next year.

The project cost was estimated at Rs 2 crore in 2014-15. "Since then there has been a 15 per cent escalation in cost because of GST," said Sajal Kumar Sarkar, the senior secretary of the Calcutta Auxiliary.

A wooden logo of Bible House, with one of the letters hanging lopsided, has been put right and the portico repaired.

A wooden staircase is being cleaned and polished while the wooden beams ( kadi barga) of the ceilings, which are termite-ridden, are being repaired.

The floor is being strengthened and the wrought iron balustrades on the balconies are being scraped before they are painted.

There will, however, be no structural changes in keeping with heritage building regulations. No changes are allowed in the facade of Grade I heritage buildings.

"We are using materials such as chun surki to make the restoration as authentic as possible," said Ashish Mukherjee of Mascon that is carrying out the restoration work.

The building will also get a 120-seat auditorium.

The "oldest auxiliary" of the Bible Society of India, the Calcutta Auxiliary came into being on February 21, 1811, at a meeting at the college of Fort William, as an extended arm of the British and Foreign Bible Societies, London. The aim was to circulate Holy Scripture among Christians in India and then Ceylon.

After Independence, the Calcutta Auxiliary became one of the 15 auxiliaries to function within the jurisdiction of the Bible Society of India, headquartered in Bangalore. Now it concentrates on translation, publication and distribution of the Bible in Bengal and Sikkim.