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Underlining the associated fee and infrastructure benefits of the proposed Central Vista redevelopment venture, the Centre instructed the Supreme Court Tuesday that the query whether or not or to not have a brand new Parliament constructing is a coverage resolution which the federal government is entitled to take.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta stated this whereas responding to a question from a bench of Justices A M Khanwilkar, Dinesh Maheshwari and Sanjiv Khanna.
Justice Khanna identified that one of many issues raised by the petitioners is if it’s potential to refurbish and use the present Parliament constructing. To this, Mehta stated it’s a coverage resolution which the Centre is empowered to make. “Unless it is utterly arbitrary and atrocious, it is something which the government can decide,” he stated, pointing to issues with the present Parliament constructing.
The coverage resolution, he stated, is to have all central ministries at one place, and that place has to be one which is traditionally vital.
Stating that he’s not treating it as an adversarial litigation, Mehta stated the federal government had taken an essential coverage resolution to assemble a Parliament complicated and central secretariat as the present one is beneath large stress. The venture can not come up at Noida or elsewhere, however on Central Vista, he stated.
Another coverage resolution, Mehta stated, is to execute the venture with out touching the present heritage properties. “Not a brick of existing buildings will be touched,” he stated, including “it will be used as a museum showcasing history”.
On the rivalry that there was no “design competition” for the venture, he stated these are often held for initiatives like struggle memorials and many others that are monuments and don’t serve useful function. For the Central Vista venture, there was a “concept competition… as the buildings proposed are functional and not ornamental,” he stated.
Contending that there’s “imminent” want for a brand new Parliament constructing, he stated the present one was inbuilt 1927 to deal with the legislative council and was not supposed to deal with a bicameral legislature that the nation has in the present day. The present constructing will be beneath extra stress when the variety of seats to Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha are raised, he stated. Both Houses are already packed and members have to take a seat on plastic chairs when joint periods are held, diminishing the dignity of the House, he stated.
The present constructing, he identified, doesn’t conform to fireside security norms. Water and sewer strains are additionally haphazard and that is damaging its heritage nature, he stated. He sought to spotlight safety considerations within the wake of the 2001 Parliament assault. It can be not quake-proof, he stated.
On the associated fee benefits of getting a brand new central secretariat constructing, Mehta stated many central ministries are housed in several buildings with the consequence that the federal government finally ends up paying hire for many of them. The new constructing, he stated, will assist keep away from this.
The reality that folks and officers must run across the metropolis to go to completely different ministries additionally will increase visitors and air pollution, he stated, including that the venture proposes interlinking of metro stations which can minimise use of automobiles.
Referring to land remaining unutilised within the Central Vista space, he stated it’s a legal waste of house. Seeking to allay fears on environmental norms, he stated “if the petitioners’ concern is environmental protection, I will say it is fully taken care of.”
He stated an in depth visitors administration plan was additionally positioned earlier than the Expert Appraisal Committee earlier than clearance was granted. The venture, he stated, will be in several phases with completely different deadlines. The development of the brand new Parliament constructing has a 2022 deadline.
He stated the brand new Parliament is a stand-alone venture.
The bench referred to the rivalry that the appliance for environmental clearance for the central secretariat had not talked about linked initiatives and sought to know if it was the strategy of the federal government that the brand new Parliament constructing was precedence, and will be separated from remainder of the venture and given desire. To this, Mehta replied within the affirmative.
On the rivalry of the petitioners that no efficient research was carried out earlier than deciding on a brand new constructing, Mehta stated “for deciding that a new Parliament is needed, we don’t need a separate study. If I feel that the house I am living in is not enough, I don’t need to invite an expert to determine that”.
Explaining this, he stated possession of the Parliament constructing is with the Lok Sabha Secretariat and contemplating the truth that quite a few occupants and Lok Sabha Speakers have indicated issues and inadequacies with the current construction, there was no want for a separate impartial research. “The metaphor of my house needing upgradation was only to indicate the obvious nature of the need and the non-requirement of separate material,” he stated.
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