Swanky flats ready for newly elected MPs in Delhi

Swanky accommodations are waiting for newly elected MPs in Delhi as the Central Public Works Department (CPWD) is ready with newly constructed duplex flats for them.

The CPWD completed the construction of 36 duplex flats with modular kitchens, four bedrooms each, a lift and an office area on North Avenue of the Lutyens' Delhi.

Low-rise flats, which have a view of the Rashtrapati Bhavan, are equipped with solar panels, LED lights, a dedicated basement parking for two cars each and all modern amenities to cater to the parliamentarians, said an official from the CPWD.

The CPWD is likely to hand over the newly built flats to the Lok Sabha Secretariat by end of this month. The Lok Sabha Secretariat will allot these flats to MPs.

"Thirty-six flats have been constructed at a cost of around Rs 80 crore against the sanctioned cost of Rs 92 crore. The construction work of these flats had started in October 2017," the official said.

He added that the CPWD constructed these flats after demolishing the old flats built several decades ago.

As per the remodelling of Lutyens zone, the government entrusted the task to CPWD which includes demolishing the old buildings and construct new structures.

The CPWD is taking up building new flats in South and North Avenue in a phased manner by demolishing old buildings, said the official.

The new Lok Sabha has around 300 members who have been elected to the Lower House of Parliament for the first time.

Meanwhile, the government has made temporary arrangements to accommodate 350 MPs till the time they are allotted full-time official residences in Lutyens' Delhi.

In the past, newly-elected MPs used to stay in five-star hotels, but this practice has been dropped following the Lok Sabha Secretariat's cost-cutting measures.