The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has announced it shallreturn the façade of Hanoi's Opera House to its original colour.

A press conference was held after members of the public and architectsraised concerns over the new shade of yellow the Opera House wasrecently painted.

"The Hanoi Opera House shall be repainted thesame colour approved for the last major restoration project in 1996,"said ministry spokesman Phan Dinh Tan.

The Opera House is a national cultural heritage under the ministry's management.

"We are carrying out regular maintenance work that will be completed in a month," he said.

Relevant government establishments made their presence felt at thepress conference, including representatives from the Department ofCultural Heritage, the Department of Fine Arts and Photography and theInstitute for Cultural Heritage Restoration.

In preparationfor the upcoming 70th anniversary of the August Revolution and the 70thNational Independence Day, the Opera House and the August RevolutionSquare are getting ready for the big occasion.

"The OperaHouse is an elegant architectural icon. The original colour must berestored," said Hoang Dao Kinh, the chief architect on the last majorrestoration project from 1994-1997.-VNA