West Delhi to get biggest surface parking of city

Decongesting Capital

The parking woes of residents in several colonies of west Delhi are all set to be resolved soon as the North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) is planning to come up with the biggest surface parking of the Capital in the area.

The North corporation is developing a three-km-long and over 20-metre-wide parking area atop the Ramesh Nagar-Kirti Nagar drain that, according to estimates, will be capable of accommodating nearly 8,000 vehicles. The upcoming project would serve residents and traders at Punjabi Bagh, Moti Nagar, Karampura, Ramesh Nagar and Kirti Nagar in west Delhi.

The NDMC is currently covering the three-km long drain at an estimated cost of Rs 107 crore.

The Corporation officials said the space created by covering the drain would be converted into a parking lot.

“The idea is to utilise unused resource of the corporation that will also generate huge revenue for the civic body. Besides, it will also reduce the chances of encroachment,” said Ravinder Gupta, chairman of the Works Committee in North Delhi Municipal Corporation.
The officials said after the drain gets covered an approximate space of around 60,000 square metres will get created.

“This will be sufficient for accommodating nearly 7,000 to 8,000 vehicles. Nearly 60 per cent of the work has been done and the project will be completed by March 2013,” Gupta added.

The drain originates from Punjabi Bagh and meanders through areas closer to colonies such as Ramesh Nagar and Kirti Nagar.

While Ramesh Nagar and Moti Nagar are predominantly residential areas, Kirti Nagar and closely located Rajouri Garden are the busiest commercial centres in West Delhi. Kirti Nagar is home to a big furniture market with over 200 showrooms.

Moreover, Kirti Nagar and Moti Nagar also have a large population of slum dwellers who encroach upon the vacant lands.

Being densely populated, these areas face an acute shortage of parking space. The works committee chairman said creating the parking lot atop the drain would require no additional expenditure as the funds for covering drain have already been approved.
“Once the work is completed, a contractor will be appointed and the parking lot can be made operational on the site without incurring a single extra paisa,” Gupta said.