Bangalore, although an IT and business hub today, has much to offer to the tourists in terms of tourist attractions. Amongst these, there are several buildings which grasp the attention of the tourists simply due their magnificence and beauty. If you simple walk down the streets you will get to see many of these buildings, depicting modernism in their neo-colonial architecture with a touch of the traditional South Indian architecture. Although the symbol of Bangalore, the Vidhana Soudha is famous for housing the state legislature, the building next to Vidhana Soudha too impresses to a great extent, which was given the name of Vikasa Soudha. Many call Vikasa Soudha the sister of the former, with a replication of the building architecture and the striking wood and stone carvings decorating the interior of the beautiful building.

A dream project of the then Chief Minister of Karnataka S.M Krishna, Vikasa Soudha was built for the purpose of housing numerous government and legislative offices which would in turn take away the load from the Vidhana Soudha. With a cost of Rs.150 crores, Vikasa Soudha was built by B.G. Shirke Builders over a land area of almost eight acres of land and has a built up area of 58,274 sq m. The building comprises of a total of eight floors housing fifteen conference halls, three hundred and sixty rooms, each decorated with beautiful carvings and famous paintings and facing the four large courtyards and also three cafeterias. The granite with the fantastic stone carvings was very well chosen from stone pits concentrated in the areas of Mallasandra, Hesaraghatta, Koira and Avalahalli.

The fact that Vikasa Soudha was an ambitious project accounts for the incorporation for some of the best and most modern facilities and systems not seen in any of the other legislative buildings across the whole of the country. A grid interactive solar power system is used in the building to provide extra, heavy and regular power supply to the whole of the building. The method of rainwater harvesting has also been adapted in order to conserve water for the prevention of difficulties in water supply in the state of Karnataka. Sufficient safety measures have been added to the building security system with the consolidation of modern and sophisticated fire extinguishing system.