Chandni Chowk pedestrianisation project will be complete by Dec 31: AAP govt to HC

The AAP government on Thursday told the Delhi High Court that the stretch of road between the Red Fort intersection and the Fatehpuri Masjid in Chandni Chowk will be inaugurated on December 31 following its pedestrianisation.

A bench of justices Hima Kohli and Subramonium Prasad was informed by various local bodies and the Delhi government that most of the work related to the pedestrianisation of the stretch has been completed. What remains to be done is joining of some intersections with the main road, installation of CCTVs and street lights on certain stretches, development of pavements, etc, the court was informed.

Taking note of the submissions by the various local authorities in their respective status reports, the bench listed the matter for hearing on January 18, 2021. The court was hearing a PIL initiated by it on the basis of news reports that the project has been derailed.

The bench had on October 8 taken suo motu notice of the “pathetic condition of the area” based on photographs in news reports, and directed the high court registry to register a petition in public interest. The high court had decided to initiate a PIL for remedying at the earliest the “complete apathy and mismanagement on the part of the authorities and the stakeholders”.

The news reports had claimed that the project of pedestrianisation of the stretch of road between the Red Fort intersection and Fatehpuri Masjid at Chandni Chowk has been derailed. The court had noted that the photographs accompanying the news articles indicated that stones and garbage were strewn all over the pathway, bollards were broken and the footpath dug up. It had noted that the pedestrianisation of the stretch was a part of the prestigious project of redevelopment of the entire Chandni Chowk area.

(Cover: Renovation work underway at Chandni Chowk under Chandni Chowk Redevelopment Project /Credit – Getty Images)