New Delhi: Delayed by over a year, the first government office space out of the three Common Central Secretariat buildings (CCS 1, 2 and 3), a part of the Central Vista project, will be ready by April end, the Modi government informed Parliament Thursday.
November 2023, the initial deadline for completion of the three buildings, was not met, along with other deadlines that followed. Most recently, it was revised to May 2025.
Under the Modi government’s ambitious Central Vista redevelopment project, a Common Central Secretariat (CCS), comprising 10 buildings, is proposed to house 51 ministries and departments.
In response to a question about the new government office spaces from DMK MP A. Raja, Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Manohar Lal said the CCS 3 will be ready by 30 April, while CCS 1 and 2 will be completed by June and July end, respectively.
The minister said the fourth office building (CCS 10) will be completed by April 2026.
“After completion of the buildings, statutory clearances for occupancy, including fire clearance will be obtained and thereafter these buildings will be put to use for locating various ministries/departments. The future use of the vacated office buildings will be notified in due course,” he said in a written response.
For construction of CCS 1, 2 and 3, the Centre sanctioned Rs 3,690 crore, besides Rs 690 crore for CCS 10, according to information provided by the minister. Contract for CCS 1, 2 and 3 was awarded to Larsen and Toubro for Rs 3,141.99 crore in October 2021.
Of the Rs 3,690 crore, the Centre has spent Rs 3,081.6 crore on CCS 1, 2 and 3, and Rs 103.8 crore on CCS 10 till date, the minister informed Parliament.
According to ministry officials, construction of CCS 1 and 2 is in advanced stages, while electrical and finishing work is going on at CCS 3.
The new office spaces are eight-storeyed buildings (ground and upper ground plus six storeys) and two levels of basement parking for nearly 1,900 vehicles.
Scale of the project and its location posed a major challenge, according to senior ministry officials. The Central Public Works Department (CPWD), construction arm of the ministry, is responsible for executing the Rs 20,000-crore Central Vista redevelopment project.
“The first set of three office buildings have two levels of basement parking. Due to the high water table, we had to continuously dewater the area to carry out the construct. We had to be very careful in carrying out the construction work,” said a CPWD official.
Shifting multiple underground utilities also added to the delay. “There was a major stormwater drain, which caters to the entire Lutyens’ Delhi area, passing through the plots where the buildings are located. The drain and other utilities had to be shifted before the work could start,” a second CPWD official told ThePrint on condition of anonymity.
Delay in securing permissions for tree plantations, restriction on construction during winter due to air pollution levels, and logistical issues due to the scale of the project led to the delay, the second official added.
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)
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