Mysore Devaraja Market with a century-old history behind it is one of the oldest commercial buildings of Mysore. It was built in memory of Devaraja Wodeyar, one of the ablest rulers of Mysore Wodeyar dynasty, on the Sayaji Rao Road, a new road laid in memory of Sayaji Rao Gaekwad of Mysore, to mark his visit to Mysore in the 1900s.
The Devaraja Market was very well planned, each section allocated for a given item, fruits, plantains and plantain leaves, betel leaves, flowers, raw sugar blocks or 'Bella', condiments, coconuts, groceries, onions and potatoes, and vegetables. The cellar underneath granite stone of each shop was a small store house for the shop-keeper to stock items of sale. The stone slab was the place for him to sit and sell his item, while the covered portion, now illegally extended and occupied by the vendors, was the walk-through for the customers to walk in the shade, protecting themselves from sun and rain. The hollowed cast iron pillers and the metal 'Donies' provided easy flow of rain water from the roofs into the covered drains, leaving no trace of water even after a heavy downpour. The office-rooms around provided
accommodation for advocates and other professionals.
The market was as beautiful as any of the European markets in the 50s and I have known foreign tourists passing such encomiums when they visited the market.
When late B.C.Lingaiah was the Municipal President, some four decades ago, market show was an annual feature. Best shops selling the best items by maintaining total cleanliness were awarded prizes. The merchants took pride in exhibiting the cups and trophies they had won in these competitons, conducted by the Mysore Municipality. No one knows why this practice was
given up. 
A point to be appreciated here is that the century-old market is still serving a majority of the
Mysore's population. What was built when the population was less than a lakh continues to serve a population of over 10 lakhs, like the K.R. and Cheluvamba hospitals. This shows the far-sightedness of the Mysore rulers, which is utterly lacking with the present day planners.
With all this and more background should the market be razed to ground? Is it not a heritage building? If this is not a heritage structure, many more such important landmarks in Mysore also go into history books, like the Poornaiah Choultry in old Agrahara, Tipu's Palace on 100 Feet Road, now Chamaraja Double Road, which Mr. Vijayendra Rao has mentioned, the Udupi Krishna Bhavan near the Silver Jubilee Clock Tower. Well, one who knows the past of Mysore can
write more on these famous buildings, which have left no trace today.

(Mr Gouri Satya e-mailed this post after browsing the thread of messages in related items we had carried elsewhere. We have been criticised for hopping from one issue/idea to another, leaving out in cyberwilderness a litter of ideas. Mr Satya has chosen to hop back to the Devaraja Market issue we had flogged extensively with little impact on our decision-makers.)