AHMEDABAD: The proposed new library in the Cept University will entail minor changes to the South Lawns, designed by the university's founder and the famous architect, B V Doshi. 

This time, Cept has been extremely cautious and wants to minimize structural changes to existing buildings. Recently, discord erupted on the campus over some changes to structures designed by Doshi. 

Cept president Bimal Patel said: "The upcoming building is being designed by Charles Correa's son-in-law Rahul Mehrotra." Patel said that CCBA, the firm of Christopher Benninger — the founder of the planning faculty at Cept — is preparing the master plan for the four-storey building. Benninger himself is a noted architect. 

The Rs 10-crore library will come up in place of the dilapidated laboratory built by the National Building Organization for its project in 1980s. Currently, the building serves as a laboratory for the faculty of technology. 

"The library will serve to structure the southern open space in the form of a plaza," said Mehrotra, a Cept alumnus. "To minimize changes to existing buildings, the library will be partially below the ground." 

Cept administration said that Doshi only created half of the South Lawns and the rest was expanded in the late 1970s. "We aren't touching the area designed by Doshi. Minor changes will be in the area that isn't part of the Doshi portion," a Cept official said. Doshi, however, said: "The entire South Lawns and landscape were designed by me."