Central Vista, India's New Parliament Complex- A need or a necessity or wastage?

Central Vista grabbed political headlines just before the first wave of COVID-19 in 2020. It was when the BJP-led NDA govt decided to establish a new Parliament Complex in the heart of Delhi in Vijay Chowk, closer to India Gate. This was intended not only to replace the existing parliament building but also for a big complex with a lot of compartments and facilities. Now, in mid-2021, almost in the same month as the Modi Govt's second anniversary, it fell into a couple of controversies. This was amidst the fact that India is badly affected by the second wave and the govt is facing a lot of criticism calling out for the cancellation of this project. Let us examine more about this project and what it means to the govt, the politicians and the people at large.

Read Analysis of the First year of NDA 2.0.

Credits- Zee News

Features of Central Vista

Central Vista is not a mere project, it is a well-planned long-term one. It will replace the existing Parliament building which was functional for close to a hundred years. Thus, this project will also be a landmark project. This will also be the first time that since independence we are opting for a new Parliament. PM Modi will create history by establishing its own legacy by taking an effort in the same. This project is expected to be completed in 2024, hopefully before the next Lok Sabha elections.

The entire budget for the project is estimated to be Rs 20,000 Cr.
The shape of the entire building will be triangular compared to the circular one we have today. It will have four storeys.
The Parliament building is expected to be completed by 2022 and hold the monsoon Session.
There is a 14-membered panel for administering the heritage work.
The new building is taken up for construction by Tata Constructions Pvt Ltd for Rs. 971 Cr.
The old circular-shaped parliamentary building will be converted into a heritage museum.
The new capacities of the halls will be as follows

Lok Sabha- 888 seats
Rajya Sabha- 384 seats
Hall for the joint session- 1272 seats

The building will be built with a lot of new features and the latest technology like smart displays, biometric voting, graphical displays, the latest microphones etc.
Apart from this, the 3 km long Rajpath road from Rastrapathi Bhavan to India Gate will be renovated called Central Vista Avenue. There will also be ample car parking space for 16,000 cars.
Inside the complex, there will be a new PM's residence and a new PM's office. It will also have a similar one for the Vice President. A lot of ministries will also be relocating their offices.

The plan, Credits- TOI Youtube

Overall the project will have centralised Air Conditioning and better security systems. The new complex will further bring different govt. offices and buildings geographically closer. The Govt. has also confirmed that a lot of buildings on the sides of the Rajpath will have to be razed to pave way for this project.

Credits- Rediffmail

Advantages of Central Vista

There is no surprise in saying that this project has multiple pros.

The existing buildings are somewhat seen as a shadow of our colonial past and the new one will be more Indianised
Existing Parliament halls are getting congested and may not be sufficient for a future expansion
Even though the buildings aren't that old, there have been several changes in technology as well as in construction methodology that haven't been improved upon yet.
Most of the offices are located in different pockets of New Delhi. This project will geographically bring these offices closer and thus reducing all the logistical challenges.
The outdated systems in the old building will be replaced with newer and more efficient technologies.
The existing central Delhi is over 100 years old and it needs a bit of restructuring and replacing. This project will hopefully save some land.
Our MPs do deserve a better Parliament building and also for the betterment of their constituencies and people of this nation.
The current capacity of the parliament is limited if at all we will be having more MPs.

Reference.

Disadvantages of Central Vista

This project always made headlines for the wrong reason. Following are the cons of the project.

The entire project cost comes at around Rs 20,000 Cr which is big enough.
Critics say that this a waste of public money as we have a Parliament already and it's not so old or outdated.
Bringing offices together will push for an initial logistical challenge in moving important documents and files.
All important offices together is a security challenge as all important places are located in a tiny complex
Destruction of up to 20 landmarks
Erasing the history of the old parliament and also of the colonial past- It's a grave argument not on logic but on the concept. Discarding the old parliament isn't quite acceptable to a lot of historical enthusiasts. They also believe that this is also in a way going to change the way how we perceive the existing building
Affects the way in which Raisina Hill and adjoining areas of Lutyens Delhi had been designed in the past.
Environmental issues associated with the project.

Controversies

Nothing in India is free of controversy especially when it comes from the ruling side. This project like any other was controversial from the beginning. The only reason it grabbed massive attention was the onset of the pandemic and the lockdown that immediately followed. The main issue was how the taxpayer's money is being wasted when the population is suffering and also how the Economy is going on the downward slide as people don't have money. The government then argued how the existing facilities are insufficient and also how this project will create a lot of jobs as well as bring more money to circulation.

SC even took up the case of Central Vista and even criticised the Central govt. Govt. replied how it will save around 1000 cr every year. Although the SC cleared the project legal experts to claim that SC has overstepped into the space of executive. Now, suddenly the issue is now coming back to headlines. Amidst the second wave, the work for the Parliamentary building has begun. Roads in the Rajpath and have been barricaded. There was also an issue where the photography and videography of the construction and construction area were banned. A lot of media houses speculated something happening behind the screen.

The cost of the project itself is the biggest concern of the critics. During the 2021 budget, hardly over Rs 35,000 Cr was allocated compared to this project where Rs 20,000 be spent. Also, the idea that only this project can save the economy faded away as India didn't have gone short of basic Medical Infrastructures like ICU beds, ventilators, oxygen plants, etc. and also a shortage of medicines and vaccines. The project now became a misplaced priority of the government, adding the same as an Essential service. Even today there is no stoppage on this project and hopefully, we will see the Parliament by 2022. This is also happening at the centre of India's politics and administrative cradle, Delhi. This was also worse affected by the pandemic and news stories were circulated all over the world.

Credits- The Quint

Politics

Coming to the political side of the same, Opposition parties have hit where it hurts Modi. They now want to pull down Modi by portraying him as an insensitive leader with misplaced priorities. Even at the worst crisis, how he is adamant in moving ahead with the project. The new perception was he will waste public money when the people are suffering. Although the required outrage as expected by the Opposition never happened. People have almost forgotten that there is a new parliament construction happening. Modi even didn't speak about it much in any of his speeches. Tactically he is able to deflect the topic from being discussed in public. Also, there is no doubt that this project if its success will be a big bargaining political tool for Modi. He will also be imprinting his legacy with the new Parliament.

Solutions

This problem is highly complex but is a lot for people of all sides to agree upon. The main issue in Indian politics is that the situation is highly polarised and not fit for mutual dialogue. There is open interaction between the ruling party and the opposition. Whatever the opposition says, the government is powerful enough to ignore it or else harshly hit back. It is not ready to accept its mistakes or even listen to them. Reaching a political consensus is difficult.

The Government had maintained that we won't be reacting much even when the pandemic was at a peak. It was seriously ignoring it and moving ahead with its political agenda. Central Vista Project wasn't halted or postponed. It was as if the project will be unaffected by whatever comes on its way. While on the other side, critics, media and parties fought to make their voices heard.

Where to draw the line? It is a big fact the present parliament building will be insufficient for future expansions even adding a new number of MPs. But should we hurry at this rate especially when the pandemic has taken away the lives of 300,000 people is an important question? The present building is not so old to claim that it's not enough. There are multiple parliaments around the world that were used for a long time but have been renovated and used. The fund for this project can be used for the fight against the pandemic and to buy vaccines. If the govt. feels that the economy needs to be recovered then there are a lot of other ways to spend the same amount more effectively. As per ThePrint report, over 20 AIIMS can be constructed at the same cost. It's pretty clear that we can find a solution if there exists a will.

Conclusion

The Central Vista project hopefully will be a successful one. At the same time, it will follow all procedures, environmental safeguards during the construction of the project. At present, there is no urgent need for the project and can be postponed to a later date. It is not too late to do so. Despite all criticisms and differences of opinion, there is no sign from Modi Govt. in postponing or amending the plan. Given that the daily COVID-19 cases in India are dropping, there is some chance that the government may bring some changes. There are sources from the Govt. that also expect a third wave and in turn will affect all the activities just like the second wave. So we will have to wait and watch how this plays out. As of now, this debate is off the mainstream and thus the best chance for the government to proceed. If this project will be completed on time, Modi has marked himself and paved for his third term.

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