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Decks cleared for Srinivaspuri flyover

By Sujay Mehdudia

NEW DELHI AUG. 23. Taking a tough stand by brushing away "objections'' raised by the Lieutenant-Governor, Vijai Kapoor, the Delhi Transport and Tourism Minister, Ajay Maken, has asked the Delhi Tourism and Transportation Development Corporation (DTTDC) to go ahead with the tendering process of the Lajpat Nagar-Srinivaspuri flyover, dubbed as one of the longest ones, following clearance by the Chief Minister, Sheila Dikshit.

Insiders in the Delhi Government said that Mr. Maken had taken a serious view of the postponement of the tendering process scheduled to begin last month. He had sought an explanation from the officials as to with whose permission the whole thing was stalled and why the Minister was not kept informed on a subject which purely falls under the State Government. Mr. Maken is believed to have made it clear that Mr. Kapoor had no right to interfere in such projects and urged the officials to get going with the project. The Minister has now fixed August 26 for holding the pre-bid conference.

Similarly, Mr. Maken, unhappy with the conduct of the Lieutenant-Governor, also sent a strong note to the Chief Minister apprising her about the whole issue and the continued interference by Raj Nivas. He is believed to have pointed out that in the entry No. 13, Schedule 7 of the State list, roads and bridges fall under the purview of the State Government and Mr. Kapoor had no right whatsoever to issue directions for the postponement of the projects. In his note, the Minister is also learnt to have attributed "political motives'' to the reported instructions issued by Mr. Kapoor to DTTDC not to go ahead with the construction of this particular flyover when all the clearances had been given by the agencies like the DDA Technical Committee, Delhi Urban Arts Commission, Traffic Police and other civic agencies.

It is believed that Mr. Maken also had a meeting with the Chief Minister and told her about the real facts and the avoidable interference from Raj Nivas. The Chief Minister is understood to have given her consent for starting the tendering process on the file and agreed entirely with the view point of the Tourism Minister. It was only after this approval by Ms. Dikshit that the Minister called a meeting of the DTTDC officials and gave them clear instructions to complete the whole process by next month so that the Chief Minister lays the foundation stone for the project after that. The project, one of its own kind, will cost Rs. 60 crores and help the motorists in cutting down journey time substantially on this particular stretch which is a nightmare for the motorists during peak hours.

The Lieutenant-Governor had asked the DTTDC not to go ahead with the tendering process as the flyover was too long and technically unsound. But despite this, the Traffic Police and Delhi Jal Board in their submissions once again have termed the project as the need of the hour without any technical problems. It is expected that the project would be completed in 18 months and one of its carriageway was expected to be thrown open for traffic within one year, that is months before the Assembly polls.

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