Renovation of Lutyens' Delhi gets nod of SC

NewsBharati    06-Jan-2021 09:00:00 AM
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New Delhi, Jan 6: The Supreme Court, on Jan 5, has allowed the Central Vista Project to go ahead. The SC heard the challenge on the basis of three main grounds, which were violations of Municipal Law, change of land use and violations of environmental law. In April 2020, a petition was filed in the SC challenging the Centre’s decision to renovate the 86 acres of Lutyens' Garden.

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The Central Vista project aims to renovate 86 acres of land in the Lutyen’s Garden in New Delhi. It includes landmark structures of Indian government such as the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament, India Gate and North and South Block. According to the petitioner who had filed a petition challenging the Centre's decision, the decision violated the Right to Life of citizens guaranteed under article 21. This is because the plan deprived people of open and green spaces. The petition also argued that the plan violated the Master plan of Delhi 2021.
 
 
The Supreme Court has now given the Centre a green signal for constructing new Parliament and other buildings for Ministries, with proposed cost of Rs 20,000 crore. A bench of Justices A M Khanwilkar, Dinesh Maheshwari and Sanjiv Khanna by a majority of 2:1 upheld environmental clearance and change of land use, clearing the redevelopment plan for the Central Vista, having over 100 heritage buildings, in the heart of the national capital and within the Lutyens' Bungalow zone.
 
 
The current Parliament was built in 1927. It was not intended to house a bicameral legislature. Rather it was built to house Legislative Council. Also, the current Parliament House signifies an Imperial origin. It is not in accordance with the aspirations of independent Indian citizens. The current Parliamentary Complex was built by the British. There are International examples of building new parliamentary structures immediately after independence. The USA constructed its capital building within 25 years of its independence.
 
 
India's existing parliamentary building does not abide by safety norms and is not earthquake proof. The 2001 parliamentary attack is the best example questioning the safety of the current parliamentary building. With such alarming concerns, the Central Vista project for the renovation of Lutyens' Garden seems to be a viable solution.