The Hindu : New Delhi News : DUAC not meeting its objective, feel experts

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Aug 25, 2004

New Delhi

New Delhi

DUAC not meeting its objective, feel experts

By Lalit K. Jha

NEW DELHI, AUG. 24. Instead of being managed by professional town planners and architects as originally envisaged, bureaucrats from the Union Urban Development Ministry have been running the show at the Delhi Urban Arts Commission (DUAC) for the past 20 months.

In the absence of a regular Chairman and professional members, the DUAC has not been able to fulfil its mandate of advising the Union Government in preserving, developing, and maintaining the aesthetic quality of urban and environmental design of the Capital.

As the duty of the Chairman and that of the professional members is being fulfilled by senior Indian Administrative Services officials, the DUAC during this period has been "prone to political pressures" and consequently gave approval to a number of controversial projects including the Police Memorial in Chanakyapuri and Akshardham Temple on the Yamuna banks.

Pained at the poor state of affairs in the DUAC, several architects and town planners have written to the Union Urban Development Minister, Ghulam Nabi Azad, appealing to him to save the Capital from "aesthetic degradation" and ensure that the Commission regained its autonomous status by appointment of a full time chairman and professional members.

At a time when Delhi is in the midst of several infrastructural projects and several more are in the pipeline due to the forthcoming Commonwealth Games, architects and town planners in their letter are understood to have urged the Minister not to leave such an important organisation in the hands of bureaucrats, who, they alleged have reduced the DUAC to an isolated section of the Ministry.

"Had there been a full-fledged Commission, the Police Memorial at Chanakyapuri could not have been approved by the DUAC. Or for that matter even the Akshardham Temple," they observed. It is understood that the professionals and experts attached with the DUAC in the capacity of advisers have opposed both the projects. But with no technical members in the DUAC, the bureaucrats had no other option but to approve the projects as both had the backing of influential politicians.

Experts alleged that bureaucrats were not competent enough to be appointed as chairman and member of the commission because as per DUAC Act they should have "sensibility and interest in visual arts and urban environment or possesses special knowledge or practical experience in respect of architecture or art".

In the absence of a full-fledged Commission, the DUAC is taking an unusually long time in clearing several important projects including that of Delhi Metro. Architects who have submitted their projects before the DUAC alleged that it has almost become defunct in the past 20 months. "The show is being run by the `babus' at Nirman Bhavan, who are least interested in the timely completion of these projects or the Capital's aesthetics," said an architect of a reputed public sector undertaking.

It is understood that several important documents like "Design Criteria for Architects", modifications of the Conduct of Business Regulations have been kept on hold for more than two years now in the absence of a regular Commission.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

New Delhi