The Maharana of Mewar Charitable Foundation is committed to the long-term conservation and maintenance of the City Palace Complex, Udaipur. The Trust utilizes its resources in maintenance of the City Palace Museum along with other philanthropic activities. It strives to make a positive contribution to the quality of life of the people of Udaipur through the management and development of sustainable projects. The City Palace Museum, the Maharana Mewar Special Library, the Maharana Mewar Research Institute, the publications division and the educational institutes are some of the key projects being managed and developed by the Trust.

Until now, the Maharana of Mewar Charitable Foundation has self-financed all conservation works in the City Palace Complex since 1969. Major restoration works carried out by the Foundation include restoration of the Zenana (Female) section and restoration of the Maharana Mewar Special Library. Though the organization generates enough resources for regular maintenance of the City Palace Complex, it still requires substantial funds for developing a comprehensive Master Conservation Plan that prioritizes the conservation activities for the complex. Considering the vastness of this historic complex, the Trust requires more funds and is seeking collaboration with national and international grant makers for this purpose. In this endeavour the Trust made an application to the Getty Foundation in Los Angeles for assistance in architectural conservation of the City Palace Complex. Based on this application, the Trust has been awarded a Project Planning Grant of 75,000 USD by the Getty Foundation.

The Getty grant will help in preparing a comprehensive Master Conservation Plan of the City Palace Complex in conformation with international cultural resource management guidelines. Developing a formal master conservation plan to govern its use and future preservation can ensure the long-term protection of this National Historic Landmark. Its goal will be to synthesize information on the history, condition, maintenance, and conservation needs of the City Palace Complex, while addressing community needs, traditional methods and appropriate adaptive reuse. Aspects such as history and construction of the site, its conservation challenges and priorities, visitor access, and the impact of tourism will be evaluated. The plan will be developed by a multidisciplinary team of architectural conservators, environmentalists, architects, materials conservators, community planners and professionals in heritage tourism. DRONAH, an NGO based in Gurgaon will work on the overall master plan and conservation strategies for the complex. Organisations such as the National Museum Institute, Birla Institute of Technology, TVB School of Habitat Studies and INTACH will also be involved as part of the Project work plan under the Getty grant.

The Trust is also in the process of collaborating with government/ non-government and Corporate Organisations within India and outside for several sustainable projects both at macro and micro level within the city of Udaipur.

The J. Paul Getty Trust is an international cultural and philanthropic institution devoted to the visual arts that features the Getty Conservation Institute, the Getty Foundation, the J. Paul Getty Museum, and the Getty Research Institute. The J. Paul Getty Trust and Getty programs serve a varied audience from two locations: the Getty Center in Los Angeles and the Getty Villa in Malibu. Additional information is available on the Getty Web site at www.getty.edu.