With no major significant development taking place in Chandni Chowk Redevelopment Plan, the execution of the project has been handed over to the PWD from the North Delhi Municipal Corporation. The Public Works Department (PWD) has suggested walking zone for pedestrians from Red Fort to Fatehpuri. There is also a proposal to make the road from Red Fort to Fatehpuri one-way as this stretch has to be resurfaced.
A high-level meeting was convened by Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit on Wednesday to review the redevelopment plan of Chandni Chowk. A presentation was made before the Chief Minister by PWD and Council of Science and Industrial Research (CSIR) on the plan.
PWD has suggested a walking zone from Red Fort to Fatehpuri. To remove unauthorised parking by shopkeepers on the both side of the roads, 2.5 meters grill will be put up along the footpath to make it walking zone for pedestrians. This will also help check unauthorised parking on the road which is the reason behind traffic jams in the area. The Chief Minister has reported to have directed PWD Minister Raj Kumar Chauhan to speed up the execution of the plan.
After the meeting, Chauhan said that all overhead cables and transformers would be made underground under the first phase. He further stated that Delhi has no systematised footpaths for easy flow of pedestrians. The walking zone for pedestrians in Chandni Chowk will help restore its heritage.
Chauhan further stated that the department will soon bring a proposal related to designs of stones for footpaths and street lightings before the Chief Minister. “After the approval, the Government will go tender. The project will look into an integrated plan for all the services and creating a “heritage environment” in the walled city,” he said.
Since the Chandni Chowk redevelopment plan was conceived in 2006, no major works of repair of road infrastructure or electrical maintenance have received sanction. But, with the Delhi government deciding to give back the main Chandni Chowk road to PWD, there will be even more delay in execution of the project. Already, the matter has become politicized, with assembly elections coming up in December. The Delhi government has transferred the project, citing delay in implementation by the BJP-led North Delhi Municipal Corporation. The BJP, however, is blaming the Government for creating roadblocks.