Vidhana Soudha - The legislative House of the State of Karnataka in India is regarded as a marvel of neo-Dravidian architecture and is one of the most imposing buildings not only in Bangalore but in India. One of the interesting features of this building is its grand staircase in the front. This staircase has a flight of forty-five steps 62 m (204 ft) wide 21 m (70 ft) deep giving a direct access to the first floor foyer leading to an Assembly Chamber. It houses the State Legislature and is the largest Secretariat in India. Kengal Hanumanthaiah, Chief Minister of the then Mysore State from 1951-1956 was responsible for the concept, the structure and the setting of this magnificent building.
Vidhana Soudha houses the State Legislative Assembly of Karnataka and part of the Secretariat. Supervised and executed by engineers and architects led by the then Chief Engineer, late B.R.Manickam of the Public Works Department, the Vidhana Soudha is an arresting monument. The building project was started in 1952 and was completed in four years. Five thousand labourers, 1500 chisellers, masons and wood carvers were employed to bring the building to its present form. Built entirely from Bangalore granite in the Dravidian style, it has floral motifs on stone carvings drawn from the celebrated temple craft of South India.
The architecture of the building is based on the Dravidian style, comprising of richly carved bases and capitals for pillars, deep friezes, cornices, arches and heavy pediments. The construction has also taken into consideration modern designs, making use of the present-day materials like steel, reinforced cement concrete glass and plastic.
