City Beat: DDA Plans To Build Parks Similar to New York's Central Park [Video]

Following an order by the National Green Tribunal (NGT), the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) has freed Yamuna Khadar at the Nangli Rajapur village. The Yamuna floodplain land of the village was being used by encroachers to grow fruit and vegetables. Products cultivated on such land are likely to be highly contaminated and can be cause of life-threatening diseases. The development authority plans to free about 4,806 acres of such land along the Yamuna.
 
Another media report says that the development authority is planning to build urban parks in three localities of the national capital similar to the New York's Central Park. The three localities where these parks will be coming up include Hauz Khas, Nehru Place and Rohini. According to DDA officials, the Hauz Khas park might be the first one to get the urban tag and will boast deer safari, museums showcasing Delhi's history, a water lily pond and a butterfly corner. This will not only help the DDA keep the national capital green but also increase tourists' interest in the city.
 
To achieve the later, the state government is also planning to improve the conditions of the roads and surroundings of popular and lesser-known historical monuments of the ancient city. Working on a proposal by the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage, authorities will develop seven routes in a systematic manner connecting various monuments. These will include Mehrauli, Tughlaqabad and Surajkund, Hauz Khas and Safdarjung's Tomb, Nizamuddin, Purana Qila and Lodi Gardens, Shahjahanabad, and New Delhi. While the Union government will fund the project, the Delhi Tourism Department is likely to be the nodal agency to implement the project.
 
In another development, about 2,000 families living in north Delhi's Sangam Park will be the first to be rehabilitated under the plan to make Delhi slum free. The Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board has submitted the plan to the North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) for approval in this regard.