Public Works Department of Delhi govt has decided to scrap the streetscaping project, which was introduced by the AAP dispensation to modernise some of the prominent arterial roads in the national capital. PWD minister Parvesh Verma termed the project a ‘waste of money’, saying the need of the hour is basic road infrastructure rather than some small stretches of fancy roads.
‘Spending ₹1 crore to beautify just a kilometre of road was preposterous when most of the roads in the national capital were broken. We decided to invest in strengthening all roads of Delhi in the next couple of years rather than spending a huge amount of money to turn small stretches of roads into so-called European-style public plazas,’ Verma said.
AAP said BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi promised before the assembly polls that no development work undertaken by its govt would be obstructed. ‘They are deliberately dismantling AAP govt’s work, troubling Delhiites. BJP cannot tolerate the fact that AAP govt launched a project to make Delhi’s roads clean and beautiful,’ the party stated.
The erswhile AAP govt had announced the redesigning of 16 sample stretches of roads, which fell under PWD’s jurisdiction, in Nov 2019. Its plan was to redesign 540km of 100-metre-wide roads as per ‘European’ standards. PWD was assigned to carry out the work, which included the development of green areas around the roads, tiling of walkways, open sitting areas, cycling tracks, designer LED lights, publicutility centres and sandstone artworks, for nearly ₹134 crore.
Some of the roads that were taken up for revamping included the BRT corridor, Aurbindo Marg, Ring Road near Rajghat, Vikas Marg and Lodhi Road. The beautification work of 16 sample stretches, measuring around 40km, was completed by 2023.
Verma, however, said the streetscaping project was very expensive and focussed largely on beautifying the roads rather than strengthening or repairing them. ‘What we got from the previous govt is a network of broken roads. These roads were not repaired for a long time, and the condition of footpaths and signage was miserable too. We decided to complete the strengthening of the entire network of 1,400km PWD roads within two years,’ he said.
‘We will repair 600 km of roads in the current financial year, of which 250km will be revamped before the monsoon. The second phase will be taken up after the monsoon,’ Verma added.
‘Instead of merely decorating the roads to make them look ‘European’, we want to ensure long-term repairs of all stretches and focus on how design can be improved so that the city roads become an example that other cities and countries follow,’ the minister explained.
