Stretch between Delhi’s Metcalfe House, Purana Quila set to get makeover

New Delhi: The stretch between Metcalfe House and Purana Quila, two of Delhi’s historic landmarks, will soon get a facelift with ornamental lamp posts and beautiful fountains, officials said on Saturday.

A detailed plan of action has been prepared on the directions of Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena, who inspected the area recently, they said.

As part of the proposed revamp, sculptures, fountains and ornamental lamp posts will be installed on the road. Public conveniences, enhanced lighting and sufficient parking space will also be provided, the officials said.

“The extremely important stretch between Metcalfe House (Chandagiram Akhaada) and Purana Qila, encompassing areas like ISBT, Nigam Bodh Ghat, Salimgarh Fort, Samadhi Complex, area behind Daryaganj, Samta Sthal, JLN Marg, Dilli Gate, ITO and Mathura Road, etc., is all set for a thorough and unprecedented makeover,” a senior official said.

This stretch, largely corresponding to the Ring Road (Mahatma Gandhi Marg), apart from catering to lakhs of daily commuters, houses many iconic sites. It is an arterial road connecting north Delhi to central and south Delhi.

It also serves as the main approach road for people coming from Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Himachal Pradesh, and Jammu and Kashmir.

“After the LG recently visited the stretch, mostly on foot, specific directions were issued for various tasks to be undertaken and completed within a fixed time frame,” the official said.

A detailed plan of action with concrete achievables was shared to address all issues and work has already started on it, the official said.

Under the plan, at least six public conveniences, including toilets and water ATMs on both sides of the road at ISBT, installation of decentralised STP for horticultural purposes, widening of the carriageway at the U-turn near Kashmere Gate metro station, multi-level and other parking at Nigam Bodh Ghat and refurbishing of the area around Hanuman Mandir will be done, the officials said.

Similarly, apart from developing a food street at Salimgarh Fort and a green recreational complex at Qudsia Ghat, ornamental lights will be installed at a distance of 10 metres from each other, sculptures with fountains will be installed at all crossings like those at Vijay Ghat, Shanti Van and Raj Ghat, they said.

The LG has also directed officials to come up with a concrete utilisation and beautification plan for a huge tract of land opposite Shakti Sthal.

“Volcano-like fountains will be installed in the Purana Quila lake and three fountains will be installed at Bhairon Marg. The entire area around the Bhairon Mandir will also be landscaped,” the official said.