Price rise of essential materials among reasons for cost hike of new Parliament building, LS told

New Delhi: The construction of the new Parliament building and Vice President Enclave saw cost escalation due to rising prices of essential materials like steel and cement, increased labour wages and a hike in GST rates, among others, the Lok Sabha was told on Thursday.

In a written reply to a question, Union Minister of State for Housing and Urban Affairs Tokhan Sahu said that under the Central Vista project, the redevelopment of Central Vista Avenue from Vijay Chowk to India Gate and the construction of the new Parliament building and the VP Enclave has already been completed.

The minister said that the construction of three buildings under the Common Central Secretariat (CSS) will be completed in May this year. These buildings are being constructed on the plot where the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts stood earlier.

According to the plan, the Common Central Secretariat, which will house various ministries, will comprise 10 office buildings and a Central Conference Centre.

One more building under the CCS project will be completed by April 2026, Sahu said in reply to Trinamool Congress MP Mala Roy's question about the present status of the Central Vista project and cost escalation.

The minister said there was cost escalation for the new Parliament Building and the Vice President Enclave due to an increase in GST rate from 12 per cent to 18 per cent on July 1, 2022, and an increase in the prices of steel, cement as well as labour wages during the period of the execution of work.

Other factors include additional security provisions decided by security agencies during the execution of work and variations in view of the design of the structure according to earthquake zone V for the new Parliament building, he added.

However, there was no mention of increased project costs in the minister's written reply.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the new Parliament building in May 2023. In April last year, Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar moved into the VP Enclave on Church Road near the Parliament House Complex.