In the recent weeks, there has been news about the selling off of a very important Parsi heritage building. The Temulji Lying In hospice has for generations been the first point of entry into the world for many a Parsi. Most of our parents and grandparents in the 60+ age group were born there. However in recent years, the hospital has come under disues and hardly any occupancy. More modern hospitals and facilities have drawn people away from this Nursing home.

However the selling off of this prime real estate by the Parsi Panchayat is myopic and not in line with common sense and logic. The building and the site can be rehabilitated and with a combination of commercial use and community usage, a balance can be struck to keep it financially viable.

A very viable solution is to convert it to an Old Person’s home for the aging parsi population. The groundfloor could be used for commercial ventures that would pay for the upkeep of the entire property. All said and done this is in the Fort area and therefore one of the most important real estate neighborhoods in the city.

Please take a moment to sign the Online Petition to save the Tehmulji Nursing Home. We will collect these online signatures and forward them to the Parsi Panchayat, in the hope that something good comes out of it.

Below is a plea forwarded to us by email. The actual author is unknown, however the message makes perfect sense.

Parsi Khabar has started an online petition for the same. If you agree with it please go to PetitionOnline and sign it. After 30 days we will deliver the petition to the Parsi Panchayat, and hopefully something will come out of it. If you have suggestions, please express them in the comments section.

This is with reference to the article in the Times of India recently stating that the Tehmulji Nursing Home or the Parsi Lying-in Hospital is up for sale. The reason given is that there are just not enough people utilizing it and it is defunct. While this is not surprising, what is very surprising is that the persons concerned are thinking of selling it off instead of putting it to good use for the Zoroastrian community.

Why can’t this Nursing home be converted to an Old People’s Home? If a maternity hospital is not the need of the hour for our community, surely an old people’s home is? There would be any number of elderly community members who would welcome the chance to live with dignity in a decent home where their needs would be taken care of. There could be separate wings for different economic sections of our community. There could also be a section where married couples could be allowed to stay together instead of the usual segregation into a ladies wing and a gents wing. Also, if the lower floor is rented out to retail outlets, the income from this would be enough to sustain and run the entire Home. Maybe the house of Tatas would show interest in taking up the space for one of their many retail ventures.

We, therefore, appeal to the Bombay Parsi Panchayat to pay heed to this matter and take urgent action to prevent the sale from taking place before it’s too late. This kind of property, once gone, can never be brought back. The money obtained from this sale would last only so long and would be over before you know it. It’s reasonable to say that the property is priceless in terms of the high value of its property rates as well as the service it can provide to our aging community.

Please pass this on to all as many of our community members as you can, both in India as well as abroad. Let a collective voice be raised to stop this foolish deed from being done.