New Delhi: Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday formally inaugurated the redeveloped stretch of Chandni Chowk here, the completion of which was delayed a few times earlier this year due to the second wave of the pandemic.
The renovated stretch of the iconic Delhi locality now has CCTV cameras, reduced overhead cables, and a 1.3-kilometre stretch of road between the Red Fort and Fatehpuri Mosque that has been pedestrianised — restricting the movement of motor vehicles.
The development project was centered around improving the beauty of the roads and incorporating amenities like public toilets and ATMs in the area as well. The stretch now has two footpaths, two carriageways and a central verge. The redevelopment plan, which started in 2018 was scheduled for inauguration on April 17 earlier in the year, but it had to be rescheduled due to the second wave.
The CM said that broken roads, traffic jams, hanging electric wires would punctuate Chandni Chowk but now that has improved and there are many more plans to develop the entire stretch as a tourist destination with permission being granted for street food in the redeveloped area till 12 am.
"We plan on further extending services of street food stalls to develop the area into a night tourism spot. People will be able to enjoy themselves here even after the markets shut till around 12 am," Kejriwal said.
The movement of vehicles has been restricted from 9 am to 9 pm on the road of Chandni Chowk to reduce the overcrowding of vehicles. There are street fire hydrants for disaster management and four earthen and sandstone signages have been installed, on which information has been given in Hindi, English, Urdu and Punjabi.
Urban Development and PWD Minister Satyendar Jain, Food and Civil Supplies Minister Imran Hussain and MLA Prahlad Singh Sawhney and senior officials of PWD were present in the inauguration ceremony. "We will soon operate electrical vehicles that match with the look of the area for the convenience of the people," Jain said.
The redevelopment of the area includes beautification work, restricted traffic timings to reduce congestion and the careful work of moving all overhead electrical cables underground.
The state government in a statement said that 124 CCTV cameras have been installed along with 100 bullet cameras and 23 NPR cameras to control traffic. "In the coming days, 17 NPR cameras will be installed at boom barrier locations to control the violation of traffic laws," the statement added.
The redevelopment has also included four toilets
and two police posts, drinking water set up and ATM, SS dustbin and sandstone seats have been installed for the public, the government added in its statement.
Manual cleaning will be done daily as part of the maintenance work with machine cleaning being done through eco-friendly battery operated scrubber and sweeper. The Delhi government has said that the cleaning services will be extended to all outdoor furniture, like bollards and sandstone seats.