Central Vista ‘project of national importance’: Delhi High Court dismisses plea to halt its construction

A bench of Chief Justice D N Patel and Justice Jyoti Singh dismissed a plea seeking to halt the project during the coronavirus pandemic, saying the petition was "motivated" and "not a genuine PIL".

New Delhi: In a major victory for the Centre, the Delhi High Court on Monday dismissed a plea for halting the construction work of the Central Vista project. While allowing the construction work for the ambitious project, the high court said that it was a "vital and essential" national project.

A bench of Chief Justice D N Patel and Justice Jyoti Singh dismissed a plea seeking to halt the Central Vista project during the coronavirus pandemic, saying the petition was "motivated" and "not a genuine PIL". 

Delhi HC dismisses a plea seeking direction to suspend all construction activity of the Central Vista Avenue Redevelopment Project in view of the second wave of the COVID19 pandemic.

The court imposed Rs 1 lakh fine on petitioners & says it's a motivated plea. It was not a PIL pic.twitter.com/vsIzqFjWLW — ANI (@ANI) May 31, 2021

Delhi High Court while refusing to stay construction work, said as the workers are staying on the site, there is no question of suspending the construction work for the project.

The DDMA order in question nowhere prohibits the construction work, the high court said. The bench also imposed a cost of Rs 1 lakh on the petitioners.

The court said under the contract awarded to the Shapoorji Pallonji Group, work had to be completed by November 2021 and, therefore, it should be allowed to continue.

It said the legality of the project was already upheld by the Supreme Court. 

Central Vista Project

It is an ambitious project of the Narendra Modi-led NDA government at the Centre, which aims to redevelop a 3.2-km stretch called the Central Vista that lies at the heart of Lutyens Delhi built by the Britishers in the 1930s. 

The project involves demolishing and rebuilding several government buildings, including iconic landmarks, and constructing a new Parliament at a total cost of Rs 20,000 crore.

In 2019, the central government announced the redevelopment project to give a new identity to the ‘power corridor’ of India. The plan envisages the construction of a new parliament, prime minister and vice-president’s residences along with 10 building blocks that will accommodate all government ministries and departments.

The project, which is estimated to be completed by 2024, is being executed by the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.

Central Vista Redevelopment Project is estimated to cost Rs 20,000 crores. Out of this, around Rs. 1,000 crores will be used for the construction of a new Parliament Building.

Key highlights of the Central Vista project

-The new Parliament Building Complex, which will be triangular in shape, will spread over 64,500 square metre
-The new Parliament building is described as the pivot of the Central Vista project design. 
-It is to be much bigger than the existing Parliament building and will be able to house 1,224 Members of Parliament.
-The Lok Sabha chamber will have a seating capacity of 888 MPs while the Rajya Sabha chamber will accommodate 384 MPs. 
-The increased capacity of the chambers has been provisioned for keeping in mind future increases in the number of MPs. 
-Currently, the Lok Sabha has 545 MPs and the Rajya Sabha 245. 
-All MPs will have separate offices in the new building.
-The new Parliament building will have a grand Constitution Hall showcasing India's democratic heritage. 
-The Constitution Hall will showcase the original copy of the Constitution
-There will be a visitors’ gallery digitally displaying India's democratic heritage.
-The existing Parliament House building will continue to be in use by retrofitting it to provide more functional spaces for parliamentary events.
-The new Parliament building will be equipped with the latest digital interfaces as a step towards creating 'paperless offices'.
-A monitoring committee having members from the Lok Sabha Secretariat, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, the CPWD, the NDMC and the architect/designer of the project will monitor the construction work.
-The new Parliament building complex is expected to be complete by 2022. 
-Central Vista project has a work completion deadline of 2024 when the next Lok Sabha election will take place.