lieutenant-Governor (l-G) Anil Baijal on Saturday inspected progress of the ambitious Rani Jhansi Grid Separator project in north Delhi and directed the officials concerned to prepare a comprehensive traffic dispersal plan in coordination with agencies concerned as congestion is likely to increase once it opens for public.
The 1.6-km-long flyover, from near St Stephen's Hospital to Filmistaan Cinema, once completed would be open for vehicular movement towards ISBT, Kashmiri Gate, and Mori Gate etc. to the citizens particularly of Shakti Nagar, Karol Bagh, Gulabi Bagh, Kamla Nagar, Sadar Bazar, Paharganj, Azad Market and surrounding areas. It was originally scheduled to be completed by 2010, but has missed several deadlines.
Biajal was accompanied by senior officials of North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NMC) and other civic agencies concerned. He further gave directions to complete the beautification of the grid separator and its surroundings at a rapid pace.
“The l-G also directed that crash barrier on both sides of the grid separator be installed,” the statement stated.
Also, Baijal, along with senior officers of the Delhi Development Authority (DDA), visited the Shanti Stupa site in Millenium park of DDA at Sarai Kale Khan on Ring Road. The park spreads over 84 acre and in 2.5 acre of the park Shanti Stupa exists which is the first of its kind in Delhi.
The additional facilities are being provided in this part to facilitate the visitors which include Viewing Gallery and Peace Museum, it stated. On September 9 last year, the then North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) Commissioner P K Gupta had said the project would be completed by November 30.
The project was conceived in 1998 but was commissioned by the erstwhile MCD in 2006. The construction work started in 2007 and has been in the pipeline since then. The agencies, responsible for removing bottlenecks, kept indulging in passing the buck for years instead of finding solutions, leading to the delay.
The project was delayed due to the multiple agencies responsible for removing roadblocks. The very fact that the main bottlenecks at Filmistan crossing and Azad Market took almost eight years to be completed tells the sordid saga of bureaucratic and political apathy.
The continuous deadline breach has escalated the project cost by Rs 547 crore more than the originally sanctioned one. The cost originally was pegged at Rs 177 crore that further increased to Rs 724 crore.