NEW DELHI: Come Thursday and Chandni Chowk will no longer be the chaotic place that Delhiites are familiar with. There will be no handcarts, e-rickshaws, commercial vehicles and cars sharing scarce space with pedestrians. The Public Works Department has met the March 31 redevelopment deadline and traffic-weary shoppers can now take a leisurely stroll down the greenery-fringed thoroughfare.
Civic officials said that parking lots were being planned in the vicinity to allow people to leave their cars and care behind. Some of the amenities that have been newly provided include public toilets, benches for visitors, loading/unloading bays for vans ferrying stocks to the shops, CCTV monitoring and Delhi Police and traffic booths for security. There has also been an upgradation of the street lighting.
PWD officials disclosed that a few touching-up tasks remained, while the rest of the project, including cementing, streetscaping, installing CCTV cameras, among other things, had been finished.
The Shahjahanabad Redevelopment Corporation (SRDC) started the Chandni Chowk redevelopment project envisioning the restoration of the Mughal esplanade’s lost glory. The work was undertaken by PWD and the revamped 300 metres of the total 1.3 km were opened for public use on Independence Day last year. Thursday will be the first day when the pedestrians will be able to enjoy using the pedestrianised stretch without their progress being hampered by construction activities.
A canal ran the length of this road when Chandni Chowk was laid out by the 17th century Mughal emperor Shah Jahan. Its clear water reflected the moonlight, lending the place a stunning air and its name, Moonlight Square. The redevelopment plan did not aim to revive the old canal, filled up by the British, only to form a 3.5-metre central verge that would house the electric transformers, police booths and toilets.
Meanwhile, the carriageway of the Jama Masjid road from Daryaganj to Kashmere Gate has been closed for all vehicular traffic for the next one month because PWD is carrying out development work at Red Fort (from Digambar Lal Jain Mandir to Old Lajpat Rai Market) under the SRDC project to redevelop the stretch in Chandni Chowk from Lal Jain Mandir to Fatehpuri Masjid.
Officials have issued a traffic advisory, informing motorists that some alternative roads will remain open to allow traffic movement. The road from Daryaganj to Old Delhi Railway Station will remain open. A PWD official said that traffic signages have been put up at appropriate locations for the convenience of the road users, and an adequate traffic staff has been deployed to ensure the smooth and uninterrupted flow of traffic.