Central Vista: From its significance, key features to estimated cost, know all about the Centre's ambitious project

Central Vista Avenue Redevelopment Project or simply Central Vista - an ambitious project of the Narendra Modi government - has been grabbing eyeballs due to its intense criticism over environmental concerns and its construction during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Delhi High Court on Monday dismissed a plea for halting the construction work of the Central Vista project and called it a "vital and essential" national project.

It is an ambitious project of the Narendra Modi-led NDA government at the Centre, which aims to redevelop a 3.2-km stretch called the Central Vista that lies at the heart of Lutyens Delhi built by the Britishers in the 1930s. The project involves demolishing and rebuilding several government buildings, including iconic landmarks, and constructing a new Parliament at a total cost of Rs 20,000 crore.

In 2019, the central government announced the redevelopment project to give a new identity to the ‘power corridor’ of India. The plan envisages the construction of a new parliament, prime minister and vice-president’s residences along with 10 building blocks that will accommodate all government ministries and departments.

Central Vista Redevelopment Project is estimated to cost Rs 20,000 crores. Out of this, around Rs 1,000 crores will be used for the construction of a new Parliament Building.

The project is estimated to be completed by 2024. It is being executed by the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.

The current Parliament building, which was built by the Britishers, is nearly 93 years old and poses structural safety concerns, according to the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs said. It is “highly stressed” and the quality of amenities it offers has “considerably” deteriorated over the years, the ministry said.

Under the Central Vista Project, the residence of the prime minister is likely to be shifted near the South Block that houses the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO). The vice-president's new house will be closer to the North Block. The “North” and “South” Blocks are named so since they are located in north and south of the Rashtrapati Bhavan. According to the redevelopment plan, North and South Blocks will be converted into museums.

In September, Tata Projects won the bid to construct the new Parliament for Rs 861.90 crores. It beat L&T’s bid of Rs 865 cores. The designers were finalised in October 2019 by the government. Ahmedabad-based architecture company HCP Design was chosen to design the building.

The NDA government has been facing stiff opposition from several quarters for going ahead with the Central Vista Redevelopment Project amid the raging COVID-19 pandemic. The NDA government allocated Rs 20,000 crore to the project in March. At the time, the Covid-19 pandemic had begun to spread its tentacle in the country. The Opposition leaders urged the government to scrap the project and divert the funds to efforts dealing with the coronavirus crisis.

At the same time, conservationists said that the revamp will meddle with the history of the current building, which was designed by Edwin Lutyens. The 1927 building will be a lost heritage, they said.

The environmentalists claim that the Central Vista Project poses a big threat to the environment. Many civil society groups and environmental organisations have appealed to the Centre to stop the “ambitious Central Vista Redevelopment Project”, at least till the pandemic is over.

The statement was issued by 65 organisations on Wednesday, urging the central government to pause the Rs 13,450 crore project and divert all available resources towards the handling of the pandemic. The statement stated that the Covid-19 outbreak has shown that human health and the environment are correlated.