Won’t interfere with East Kidwai Nagar project: HC

NEW DELHI: The Delhi high court on Thursday declined to interfere with the East Kidwai Nagar Redevelopment project, saying it was in tune with the Master of Delhi (MPD) 2021 even as the court assigned specific tasks to several agencies involved in order to address concerns raised by the residents of South Extension-ii who petitioned the court in 2014.

The court observed that while decentralisation of offices was the need of the hour, it cannot be said there was total prohibition on relocation of central PSU offices within Delhi at present. “One can only say that the government must work towards the fulfilment of this goal that has been set in the MPD,” Justice Navin Chawla said.

The East Kidwai Nagar project is one of the massive residential redevelopment plans around the Ring Road. The complex, spread over 86 acres, aims to construct more than 6,000 residential and commercial plots. As per the central government’s plan, eight areas are being developed as group housing societies —East Kidwai Nagar, Sarojini Nagar, Netaji Nagar, Nauroji Nagar, Kasturba Nagar, Thyagaraja Nagar, Srinivaspuri and Mohammadpur where more than 25,000 flats for government employees are being made in these neighbourhoods.

The court on Thursday directed the National Buildings Construction Corporation (NBCC), which is carrying out the project, to not hand over the possession of the commercial space at East Kidwai Nagar until compensatory transplantation is carried out and the 10% excess earmarking of commercial space adjoining the Darya Khan Tomb is not compounded.

The court said mere grant of sanction by the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) for construction, cannot give the right to the NBCC to encroach upon a protected monument area where no construction could be done within 100 metres according to the norms of the Archaeological Survey of India.

“…The project has been considered by various Authorities like the state Level Environment Impact Assessment Authority, National Monuments Authority,

Delhi Pollution Control Committee, Unified Traffic & Transportation Infrastructure (Planning and Engineering) Centre, New Delhi Municipal Council, Delhi Urban Arts Commission, etc. In absence of any specific challenge to any of such permissions, this court cannot sit as an appellate body over such authorities to reassess the permissions so granted,” the court said.

Advocate Manali Singhal, who represented the petitioners, said the project violated traffic, pollution and environment norms. She said the project does not provide for adequate infrastructure in form of roads, open spaces, water supply, green belt, etc and alleged violation of various conditions imposed by the authorities while granting permissions for the project.

The court said that it has to be ensured that for lack of parking space in the colony, vehicles are not parked outside on the main or the arterial roads. It directed the authorities to ensure “strict policing and zero tolerance” to avoid congestion.

“Once the order is read and understood, the court orders will be implemented as directed,” the Delhi traffic police said.

The authorities told the court that they had already planted 14,575 trees till October 2019 as compensatory plantation out the total 15,455 approved. A senior forest department official said the HC’S orders will be followed.

Court cannot sit as an appellate body over authorities to reassess the granted permissions.