Once upon a palace…
The 55-acre campus of the National Academy of Indian Railways (NAIR) in Vadodara is indeed green, wooded and beautiful. But the crowning glory of the campus is the Pratap Vilas Palace (also called Lalbaug Palace). Built in 1914, at a cost of around Rs. 8 lakhs, it was leased to the Indian Railways after Independence.
The Railways purchased the palace from the Gaekwads (former rulers of Vadodara) in 1964 for over Rs. 24 lakhs. The palace is named after the last ruler of the erstwhile Baroda State, Pratapsinhrao Gaekwad.
Pratap Vilas Palace was designed by C.F. Stevens. Incidentally, the designer is the son of British architect F.W. Stevens, who designed what was earlier known as the Victoria Terminus (VT) in Mumbai.
The highlight of the palace’s architecture is the copper dome. Built in the Renaissance style, it has other classical elements such as semi-circular arches and ionic columns. Today it houses the offices of NAIR faculty and staff. There are also a few classrooms in the palace.
NAIR has been training railway officers from probationers to general managers ever since it was established in Dehradun in 1930. It shifted to Vadodara in 1952, the earlier name of the institution being Railway Staff College. The NAIR campus is also home to peacocks and is visited by migratory birds. Definitely worth a visit.
Sources: nair.indianrailways.gov.in, historyofvadodara.in
