The Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC) had recommended granting environmental clearance to the Central Vista redevelopment project. It said that the project developers should ensure that during the demolition of existing structures, no air pollution is caused.
The Central Vista redevelopment project includes the (re)development of Common Central Secretariat Buildings and Central Conference Centre, along with the residence of the Prime Minister, SPG Building as well as Vice President’s Enclave. The estimated project cost, as per PTI, has been revised from Rs 11,794 crore to Rs 13,450 crore. It will be fully completed by March 2024.
With recommendations of the expert panel, the massive project comes a step closer to getting the environment clearance, which is to be given by the Union Environment Minister. The project is being executed by the Central Public Works Department (CPWD). In order to avoid air pollution during the demolition process, the committee told the department that efforts must be made for instant demolition of the latest technique in place of extended demolition.
The CPWD said it will cover the impact of the PMO in the Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) report for holistic coverage of overall impacts. This means under the project, a new PMO will also come up. In its earlier proposal, the CPWD had not mentioned a new PMO’s construction. It had written a letter to the committee saying that the proposed PMO’s impact will be included in the EIA report.
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The expert panel found that Central Vista redevelopment project is now integrated with the nature. It recommended granting Terms of Reference after a detailed deliberation. It directed the project developers to provide a detailed demolition plan along with mitigative measures, include proposed strategy details for the management of construction as well as demolition waste.
