The Delhi Government is planning to remove bottlenecks across the city and beautify areas beneath flyovers to curb roadside encroachments and prevent accidents. The Public Works Department  (PWD), along with other agencies, including MCDs and traffic police has studied  28 corridors, out of which five corridors have been chalked down as pilot projects.

The five corridors include Aurobindo Marg to Andheria Mor; Mathura Road  (Neela Gumbad to Badarpur flyover); Savitri Flyover (Chirag Delhi crossing to Savitri flyover); Dhaula Kuan flyover to CGR flyover Sanjay T-point and the fifth corridor Sardar Patel Marg from 11 Murti to Dhaula Kuan. The clearing of bottlenecks near Nizamuddin was also earmarked. However, a separate meeting would be conducted by the respective agencies to discuss and plan the future course of action.

The exercise would involve, encroachment removal, shifting of trees, making of Foot Over Bridges (FOBs) and underpasses as per the requirement, widening, renovation, construction, iron grilling and shifting of bus stands, wherever necessary.

“This initiative has been taken to make the city free of any bottlenecks which cause major traffic congestions and give it a bad name. Due to encroachments, beggars and others stay on the footpaths instead of the shelters provided by the Delhi Government. It makes the area vulnerable to accidents at night,” a Delhi Government official told The Pioneer.

In the first week of May, a meeting was held under the chairmanship of Chief Secretary MM Kutty, following earlier directions of lieutenant-Governor Anil Baijal and also in pursuance of Supreme Court orders. The senior officers of local bodies, Urban Development department, PWD, Delhi Traffic Police, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) and Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) were also present.

“We are mainly making the area green and erecting fences across it, while the traffic police suggested in the meeting that the following five corridors may be taken up as a pilot project to remove bottlenecks. The three municipal corporations would be responsible for removing encroachments,” said the official.

In the  first corridor, the North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NMC) and South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) would undertake the work of removal of encroachment and the SDMC will identify some sites near Yusuf Sarai market as well as Adchini to accommodate parking of cars there. In terms of widening of the road at Press Enclave, a fresh assessment was decided upon to avoid cutting of trees, the official added.

In the second corridor, it was suggested that the SDMC and Delhi Police will address the issue of removal of the hawkers and ice cream vendors from vicinity of Neela Gumbad. In cases of parking near Nizammuddin Police Station, Delhi Police informed that the vehicles were lying there as case of property for many years. However, the police promised to remove the unauthorised parking.

The DMRC said cordoning of the Ashram Chowk would be removed by June and restoration of the road would be completed by August 2017.

Regarding the issue of removal of encroachment from Nehru Place to Chirag Delhi on Outer Ring Road, SDMC was directed to take necessary action as per DMC Act on urgent basis. Road widening from Chirag Delhi to Nehru Place was also discussed.

In the fourth corridor, the DTC was directed to undertake a feasibility study in a time- bound manner while in the fifth corridor, traffic police was directed to do a study on one way traffic on Abai Marg in Chanakyapuri area.

Regarding clearing the bottlenecks near Nizamuddin Dargah, it has been decided that since the corridor has been earmarked, time should be granted to the agencies to come up with solutions. The officials also decided to convene a separate meeting to review the matter.