Amid Covid surge, Centre sets deadline for PM's new house

The Central Vista project has been put under the category of "essential service" in order to continue with the construction work without any hindrance due to the Covid pandemic-hit capital city or the lockdown.


The Prime Minister's new residence, which is a part of the Central Vista Project has received an all-clear by an expert panel of the environment ministry and the house will be completed by December 2022. The clearance comes in midst of the deadly second wave of the pandemic that has left the country devastated and strained the health care infrastructure. Covid-19 has ravaged the country claiming more than 2 lakh lives.

The Central Vista project has been put under the category of "essential service" in order to continue with the construction work without any hindrance due to the Covid pandemic-hit capital city or the lockdown. Other than the Prime Minister's new house, the new Parliament building is set to be completed by November 2022 while the Vice-President's residence is scheduled to be completed by May 2022. 

The headquarters of the Special Protection Group (SPG) exclusively dedicated to the PM's security and an executive enclave for bureaucrats are also scheduled to be completed by December 2022. According to the officials, the projected cost of the new buildings is Rs 13,450 crores and the plan will approximately enroll nearly 46,000 people for employment.

Opposition parties have slammed the central government for constructing a new Parliament building, offices and houses in one of the most historic parts of Delhi and that too at the time when the country is struggling to survive and dealing with the Covid emergency.

Many have criticized the Centre on social media for the cost of the project when there is crisis of resources like oxygen, vaccines, medicines and beds. India has been reporting more than 3 lakh Covid cases for days. 

 

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