The Hindu : New Delhi News : Work on East-West Corridor to start soon

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Friday, Feb 22, 2008
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New Delhi

Work on East-West Corridor to start soon

Gaurav Vivek Bhatnagar

Feasibility studies over the alternative project to Tunnel Road have also been taken up

DUAC had suggested that the alternate corridor be constructed over the Bara Pulla drain
The first phase of East-West Corridor will link Akshardham temple to New Delhi Railway Station

NEW DELHI: While bitterness caused over the controversy surrounding the Tunnel Road project from National Highway 24 to Lodhi Road has led to resignation by four members of the Delhi Urban Arts Commission, the Public Works Department of Delhi Government has taken the alternative suggested by the Commission quite seriously and has begun work on the 5.5 km elevated corridor from Sarai Kale Khan to INA Colony on the Bara Pulla drain.

Engineer-in-Chief of PWD R. Subramanian said, “The DUAC had suggested that the alternate corridor be constructed over the Bara Pulla drain and so we have undertaken feasibility studies for the elevated road project that would provide a fast link between Sarai Kale Khan and INA Colony.”

This road project would involve construction of two three-lane carriageways. The elevated corridor would pass by Nizamuddin, Jangpura and Lodhi Colony on the way to INA Colony.

Areas of concern

However, there are some areas of concern here too as the Bara Pulla drain is also an aesthetic feature of Delhi and the corridor would pass close to some tombs as well.

The PWD would soon also start work on the first phase of the elevated East-West Corridor that has been approved by the DUAC. Mr Subramanian said while the entire first phase is 8 km long and involved construction of an eight-lane corridor from near Akshardham temple on the banks of the Yamuna in East Delhi to New Delhi Railway Station, what has been approved thus far by DUAC is the section up to Ring Road near Bhairon Marg behind Pragati Maidan.

New bridge

He said as part of this corridor – which in the next phase is to travel up to Punjabi Bagh in West Delhi – a bridge would also be constructed over the Yamuna. Work on the project that would start near the temple and then move over the railway lines and cross the Yamuna before reaching Ring Road near Bhairon road is expected to start in July 2008.

The project is scheduled to be completed by June 2010 ahead of the Commonwealth Games scheduled to be held in October 2010.

With the DUAC now expected to get a new team, there is a general sense of expectation in both the Delhi Government and the Union Ministry of Urban Development that various project which had not met the expectations of the illustrious members and had therefore not been approved by the Commission, would now move ahead with slight modifications.

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