90-yr-old police address finds a new beat

While still maintaining its heritage character, the colonial-era police building in Delhi's Diplomatic Enclave is being redeveloped into a modern gazetted officers' mess.

- Karn Pratap Singh

(Clockwise from top left) The police building at 17, Mother Teresa Crescent Marg, in Chanakyapuri, which now has modern additions such as a glass house, an extensive bar area and a lounge space for events.

(ARVIND YADAV/ HT PHOTO)

A single-storey white colonial building in Delhi's Diplomatic Enclave, which has stood as a silent witness to the Capital's policing history for nearly nine decades, is now undergoing a transformation that will give it a new lease of life.

Tucked discreetly in a leafy corner, 17, Mother Teresa Crescent Marg in Chanakyapuri, is being redeveloped into a modern Gazetted Officers’ (GOs) mess. Once completed, the revamped space will serve as a social and ceremonial hub for senior police officers above the rank of assistant commissioners (ACPs). According to officers familiar with the refurbishment plan, it will also offer a space to host official and personal gatherings, from promotion and retirement parties to birthdays and even weddings of the officers’ children.

At present, the 90-year-old building, spread across about four acres, is serving as the police academy for ‘smart policing’ and offices of the Police Families Welfare Society (PFWS).

The campus, known as ‘17 MTC’ among police officials, stands nearly 400 metres from the Teen Murti-Haifa Chowk roundabout. It has two iron gates—one for entry and the other for exit—connected by an internal driveway. Beside the driveway is a long, open green lawn that is often used to set up temporary tents for social gatherings.

About 100 feet from the entrance gate is the main white limestone building. A long front corridor with 30 round pillars runs across it. Parallel to the corridor are 10 rooms and halls, currently used for smart policing training, meetings, and offices of the Police Families Welfare Society (PFWS).