The newly inaugurated automated parking lot in Kamla Nagar is under grave risk owing to water accumulation in the basement of the structure. High groundwater level in the area has resulted in water seepage in the two lower floors of the underground parking lot rendering them useless and may also weaken the foundation of the structure.
In a disclosure that once again cast doubts on safety of the Rs 200-crore project, North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NMC) Commissioner PK Gupta on Wednesday said that due to high water level, water has been seeping through the walls and floor of the parking. The engineers of the construction agency have not been able to stop the seepage despite chemically treating the RCC concrete walls in the basement.
Notably, two other automated parking lots in the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) areas have also failed to attract motorists owing to persistent technical glitches and delay in taking out the vehicles from the parking lot.
During a discussion in the meeting of Standing Committee of NMC, Gupta said the problem was occurring in the seventh and the eighth level of the parking lot. The reason, officials said, was the water level at the depth of just 10 metres in the Kamla Nagar area. They feared this could lead to water seepage in the sixth level as well leaving only the first five floors operational.
Further, the Municipal Commissioner went on to announce that the Corporation would not be constructing any underground parking lots in its areas; a majority of which falls along the Yamuna River. Since the water level is high and the soil is damp in these areas, this could pose a grave risk to the structures. Gupta said that keeping in view public safety, the Corporation would go ahead with construction of multi-storeyed surface parking lots. "Besides being economical, the surface parking lots will be safer as compared to underground parking structures. If the height of the structure becomes a bar, we will approach the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) seeking relaxation," Gupta added. This assumes greater significance in the wake of the collapse of an under-construction parking lot at Pitampura, while the digging work was on. The enquiry report, too, had said the loose soil in the area had caused the collapse.
Meanwhile, the Standing Committee also passed a resolution seeking to identify unused vacant plots within its jurisdiction for constructing multi-storeyed parking lots. The resolution moved by leader of House Mahendra Nagpal also proposed to do away with underground parking lots as they more expensive than surface parking. "Since surface parking structures require lesser digging work, it will cause minimum traffic inconvenience. Further, this will generate revenue to the corporation as a portion of it can also be leased out for commercial activities," the resolution read.
It may be noted that the parking lot was opened with great fanfare on Sunday; though just four floors of the facility are ready for use. The parking lot can accommodate 828 cars and 300 two-wheelers. The Kamla Nagar parking lot is also the first automated parking site of the North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NMC). It has been constructed in three-year time in collaboration with a private contractor -- SMS Infrastructure after it was announced in 2007. The actual work had started in March 2010, but the project was delayed due to multiple hurdles. The parking lot has been developed on an area of 3,192 sq m and has seven levels with six lifts.