The Times of India 04.11.2009

Corpn denies Egmore Stn Rd works were carried out

TNN 4 November 2009, 04:30am IST

CHENNAI: The Chennai Corporation has denied that any part of the road widening and footpath improvement works on Gandhi-Irwin Road was taken up before tenders were finalised, as reported by TOI on Tuesday.

Referring to a photograph that accompanied the TOI report, an official release said: "The picture shows portions of the footpath which are in good condition. This work is not being carried out by this tender. The estimate is for improvement of footpath; the widening work has not been carried out."

The Nungambakkam zonal office had floated tenders last week for works for 290 metres on Gandhi-Irwin Road in two parts one covering Whannels Road and Kennet Lane and the other Kennet Lane and Egmore MTC bus stop.

Even as the corporation maintains that no footpath laying work was done, a notice issued by the assistant executive engineer to the contractor, a copy of which is with TOI, instructed the contractor to stop the "ongoing footpath laying work beyond its assigned area," as a separate estimate was sanctioned. This notice was issued on October 20, two days prior to floating of fresh tenders.

However, the official release called the work done by the contractor as "extra work... (which) has no relavance to the existing tenders."

The corporation has estimated the cost of the work, including removal of a couple of trees and pillar boxes and widening of the road at Rs 9.03 lakh. As many as 15 contractors purchased the tender forms from Ripon Buildings after paying Rs 1,688 each. The contractors alleged that they were told by officials not to participate in the tendering process as the job has already been completed.

The corporation challenged the allegations. "The very fact that 15 tender forms were sold for two tenders means that there was no restriction on participation. Tenders can be put in the drop boxes kept at four places, including the vigilance officer's office. It is virtually impossible to prevent anyone from dropping forms. And no complaints were received," the statement said.

Indian Express 29.09.2009

Road to development needs breathing space, say experts

The Capital got its share of expert opinion on alternative urban planning at the recent Urban Habitat Summit, held at the India Habitat Centre. Newsline spoke to three experts and asked them to identify the single-most important issue in Delhi that bothers them, and how best to deal with it.

Over to the experts

Phillipe Rode, executive director, Dept of Urban Age, London School of Economics and Political Science
Even the short distance between India International Centre and the India Habitat Centre is an ordeal for Rode. “There are no proper pavements and signal meant for pedestrians don’t seem to work.”

The BRT corridor, he says, is the answer to the city’s traffic woes, besides fulfilling the need to have proper pedestrian and cyclist pathways. Rode says Connaught Place is the ideal model that upcoming city centres and private developers should emulate. “It is comfortable to walk around the area; it is an urban space that welcomes even those who do not have cars.”

Rode suggests stringent laws for private developers while giving out land: “They must ensure there are walkways or lawns for the public around the property, as in London.

“But they must ensure that ownership of this space lies with the government, which unfortunately is not the case in the UK.”

Manit Rastogi, managing director, Morphogenesis
Fed up of Delhi’s stinking drains, Manit Rastogi decided to deal with the issue head on. And what emerged is a “sustainable urban blueprint”, or the Nullah Project.

Rastogi’s solution focuses on converting the city’s 350-kilometre drainage network to green inter-connected walkways linked to mass transit routes. “The sewage flowing through these drains should be organically cleaned at source, as opposed to carrying the sewage through the length of the city to inefficient sewage treatment plants.”

So emerged a vision of green alleys flanked by clean drains, linked to major bus stops and Metro stations — a vision that may soon see light of the day.

“The Lieutenant-Governor has reacted positively to the project and it was decided last week to pick the Gautam Nagar drain as a pilot project.”

The project, when implemented, would solve multiple problems such as the issue of sewage treatment, provide for groundwater replenishment, and provide interconnected walkways, Rastogi says.