In a city where there are more leaping skyscrapers and concrete structures than there are green spaces, there’s hardly, if at all, any scope for hardcore professionals and the elderly to catch up on some recreation.
Add to it pollution, which has emerged as the single biggest public health hazard in the national capital, to the extent of forcing many to ponder shifting elsewhere to escape the poison air, and one need not emphasise enough how much the city is crying out for a space which will enable residents to not only fill their lungs with fresh air but also offer enough in the way of recreational indulgence.
And this is precisely where the ambitious Bharat Vandana (invocation) Project of the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) comes in. To be modelled on public spaces in ancient Harappan cities and raised on a sprawling open field in Sector 20, Dwarka, the park will not only cater to the recreational needs of the people, across ages, but also give a platform for artists and professionals to showcase their talents.
For ‘ease of living’
To be developed on 200 acres in sub-city Dwarka, the project is consistent with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s promise of guaranteeing ‘ease of living’ to each urban citizen and according to them all the necessities that are considered key to the urban living, a DDA official said.
The cost of the project, which has been assigned to state-owned realty firm National Building Construction Corporation (NBCC), has been pegged at Rs 524 crore.
The deadline for the project has been set at March 20, coinciding with the diamond jubilee celebration of the country’s freedom.
While the project was conceptualised in March 2019, it was formally launched last December by Union Home Minister Amit Shah, in the presence of Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri and Delhi’s Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal.
Speaking to this correspondent, DDA vice-chairman Tarun Kapoor said the NBCC has already initiated the process for inviting bids for the project.
“Tenders have been invited. As the cost of the project is over Rs 500 crore, it may take three months to evaluate the tender bids. Work on the project will start only after,” the DDA vice chief said.
According to the land-owning agency, the park, which will be the biggest facility of its kind in the national capital, will not only stand as a leading landmark of west Delhi but also draw visitors in droves.
As per the plan, a portion of the allotted space would be developed as ‘Mini-India’, where miniaturised replicas of heritage or iconic structures of other states would be showcased. It will also comprise recreational areas, walkways, gold cart track, water bodies, craft bazaar, exhibition area, café and restaurants.
“Archaeological evidence suggests that large public spaces such as markets, workshops for making handicrafts and houses, both big and small, were common urban landmarks of Harappan cities.
It is our 7,000-year-old civilisation that has given the country its multilingual, multi-ethnic and syncretic identity. Such spaces would encourage people to gather at one place and engage with each other,” said an official privy to the project.
Many attractions
The official said the park is an attempt to carry forward the tradition of the Indus Valley Civilisation. Being one of the largest and busiest metropolises, Delhi deserves space which encourages children to go out and play and the elderly to enjoy a fulfilling post-retirement life. Among the other attractions at the park will be a tree-walk zone, nine pylons standing at a height of 45 metres, which will be connected through a kilometre-long skywalk, amphitheatres, viewing deck, garden for medicinal plants, conservatory domes, fun park, adventure park, lake view restaurants, boating lake, gold cart tracks and Central Vandana Sarovar.
Four sewage treatment plants (STPs), each with a capacity of 200 kilolitres per day, are also proposed to be built at the site to process in-house wastewater. It will cater to the need of non-potable water for household use. Extensive rainwater harvesting has also been proposed at the site. Four rainwater underground storage tanks, each with a capacity to hold 1 crore litres of water, would be installed where the rain run-off would be collected and stored. The water would be used to feed lakes.
The DDA manages the city’s largest green spaces, spread over 5,050 hectares. These include hundreds of district and neighbourhood parks, two biodiversity parks and 12 landmark green spaces such as Swarn Jayanti Park (Rohini), Deer Park (Hauz Khas), Jamali Kamali Park (Mehrauli), Sanjay Lake Complex (east Delhi) Golf Course (Lado Sarai) and Indraprastha Park, along the Ring Road. The Bharat Vandana Park would add to the green spaces in its care.
Voices of opposition
While the urban development body and the central government are gung-ho about the project and the promise its holds for the city, residents of Dwarka have opposed the idea of developing an ‘amusement park’ on a patch of green in the area. Flagging the possibility of environmental issues arising out of the project, a group of residents has launched an initiative to protect Dwarka’s ‘green lungs’, demanding that the space be turned into a biodiversity park or an urban forest to ensure protection of local ecology.
Diwan Singh, a resident of Dwarka and and environment activist, said that the project would add to the pollution level in the sub-city, which is already among the top ten most polluted zones in the national capital.“As the area is close to the airport and is used by thousands of motorists on any given day, the pollution levels here are alarmingly high. A flood of new housing projects, an expressway and an international convention centre nearby are bound to increase footfall even more, thereby adding to the congestion. Pollution will most certainly go up as a result,” Singh said.
Singh said that as the site for the proposed ‘theme park’ is marked as a ‘green area’ in the Master Plan of Delhi (MPD), it should be maintained as such. He suggested that the site be utilised instead for air cleansing, noise absorption and groundwater recharge.“A biodiversity park is the best bet here. This area is home to all the native vegetation, which doesn’t need water for sustenance. If anything, they help in groundwater recharge. If we care about the local wildlife, which includes neelgais (antelopes), peacocks, turtles and mongeese, they should be left where they are. The area is already congested. Why does the DDA want to make it even worse?” Singh said.
The residents will soon adopt a resolution and submit a memorandum to the DDA and Union urban development ministry, airing their concerns. “We are rallying residents of Dwarka societies and people from nearby villages and other colonies to the cause and will approach the authorities concerned soon,” Singh said.
DDA’s green pledge
Responding to issues raised by residents and activists, Kapoor said the DDA has decided to plant more trees in the area than there are at present. “There are two green patches in the vicinity and DDA has already made a plan to development them. There will be a park, with restaurants, lake and recreational spaces such as Mini-India. We are taking care of all possible environmental issues. We will use less brick and mortar. The focus will be on using materials that don’t raise environmental concerns,” the top DDA official said, seeking to dispel residents’ fears of environmental fallout.
However, there were others who voiced hope that the project, once complete, will boost the local economy and bring many benefits to residents. “People like me may have better opportunities to earn a livelihood. More visitors here would mean more business for me. This space is otherwise deserted,” Ram Vibhor, a vendor, said.