Heritage debate as Delhi HC decides on plea to halt Central Vista work

A petition says the project is not an "essential activity" and thus can be put on hold during the coronavirus pandemic.

The Delhi High Court on Monday will pronounce its judgement on Monday on a plea that sought directions to halt the ongoing work of the Central Vista project in Delhi because of the surge in coronavirus cases.

A bench headed by Chief Justice of Delhi D N Patel and Justice Jyoti Singh, who have been hearing a plea for suspension of construction work of the project, reserved its order after the conclusion of arguments of lawyers from both the side. 

The joint plea by Anya Malhotra, a translator, and Sohail Hashmi, a historian and documentary filmmaker, says the project is not an "essential activity" and thus can be put on hold during the pandemic. Here are key things to know about the Central Vista project.

• The Central Vista project in Delhi, worth Rs 20,000 crore consists of building a new Parliament House, a new residential complex to house offices, and the Prime Minister and the Vice-President. It will also have new office buildings and a Central Secretariat to accommodate various ministries’ offices, reported 'Deccan Herald'.

• As a part of the project, three iconic buildings, the National Museum, the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA), and the National Archives Annexe will be demolished as a part of the Central Vista Redevelopment Project. These buildings house invaluable art, manuscripts, and other important documents which will be moved to different locations reported NDTV.

• The government has been criticised for pushing forth the construction work of the project amid the pandemic when cases across the country have surged. In a plea, before the Delhi High Court, the petitioners' counsel Sidharth Luthra termed the project as ‘central fortress of death’ and questioned the deadline marked for the project. He said that Centre's claim on the availability of medical facilities, testing centre, and other amenities on the site were all false, reported news agency PTI.

• The government in a written reply has said the workers for the project were engaged ‘well before' the imposition of curfew in Delhi and the workers are staying at the site in compliance with the Delhi government’s Covid-19 guidelines, reported 'The India Express'.

• The Central Vista Development project was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in December last year. The project intends to revamp 86 acres of land in Delhi, which includes Rajpath, Parliament House, Rashtrapati Bhavan, India Gate, North Block, and South Block, Shastri Bhavan, and Udyog Bhavan.