UT administration is open to examining all options in order to save trees, which includes avoiding the Tribune flyover altogether, UT adviser Manoj Kumar Parida said on Friday.
Parida’s statement came two days after the Punjab and Haryana high court (HC) stayed the transplanting and axing of 473 trees for the Tribune flyover project, on an NGO’s plea.
“I have discussed the court order with UT administrator VP Singh Badnore and Chandigarh MP Kirron Kher. We are open to all options,” Parida said. Kher, however, said she did not comment on court orders.
Following the HC order, work on tree transplantation, started on Tuesday, was completely stalled on Thursday. The UT engineering department also suspended the work on diversion of underground utilities like sewage, drinking water and storm water pipes.
Work to remove the trees and redirect underground pipes was started to clear the project site, essential for the flyover’s construction.
“Even the ancillary work won’t be started now, unless it gets court’s nod, since the entire project is under a cloud,” said a senior UT official, who wished not to be named.
UT’s senior standing counsel Pankaj Jain said the court had not stayed the flyover project. “It has only asked for exploring other options and not to remove trees,” he said.
The controversial 1.6km flyover is to be built from near the GMCH-32 roundabout up to the railway overbridge on Dakshin Marg after passing over Tribune Chowk.
It was on March 3 that UT administrator VP Singh Badnore had laid the foundation stone of the ₹184-crore project. The administration had then set a deadline of 15 months for its completion.
The construction was to start in July, but was delayed as no bidder could pass the technical bidding stage after the first tender was floated. After the approval of contractor for civil work on Tuesday this week, the administration had set a 18-month deadline for completion of project, which is all now delayed following HC’s stay.
Hry, Punjab to suggest solutions
On Wednesday, while staying cutting of trees, high court had directed the Haryana and Punjab governments to deliberate on other options to save the trees.
In the detailed order released on Friday, the high court said both states were duty bound to address Chandigarh’s traffic congestion, it being capital of both states.
“We will be issuing a public notice within a week inviting all stakeholders and petitioners for their suggestions on how to save the trees. They will be given adequate time to present their case,” Parida said, adding that the hearings will be held at the UT Guest House and be presided over by him.
Senior officials of Haryana and Punjab, as directed by the HC, will also be asked to attend the hearings.
THE ROAD AHEAD
Following HC’s stay, the UT administration is now faced with exploring alternatives that it had earlier junked. These solutions, suggested by the urban planning department, don’t involve cutting trees, and are also in line with the Chandigarh Master Plan 2031.
Ring Road
As the inter-state traffic passing through the Tribune rotary is a major cause of congestion, the planning department had suggested a ring road, in the periphery of Chandigarh, to divert the traffic going to Mohali from Zirakpur. The engineering department had junked the idea, saying the ring road was quite far from UT boundary and even Mohali.
About 1.50 lakh inter-state vehicles enter or leave the city per day, with Tribune rotary bearing major pressure of it. While the proposed outer ring road is yet to take off, the inner ring road is nearing completion.
Road expansion
To ease traffic pressure, the urban planning department had suggested expanding the existing 80-foot wide road in Industrial Area, Phase 2, particularly for diverting long-route buses towards ISBT-43 before reaching Tribune rotary.
Streamlining traffic
It even suggested simpler options to regulate traffic flow to ease traffic congestion. These included lane markings, directional arrows, intersection-controlled markings and bus boxes.
The provision of median U-turns, forcing vehicles to go straight and take a U-turn, instead of straightway turning right at the roundabout was also suggested.
Dedicated bus lane
Reserving/demarcating extreme left lane, using solid 10cm-thick yellow line, for both city bus services and ambulances was also suggested.
PLANNING DEPT’S IDEAS DISREGARDED
A May 2018 letter, sent by the senior town planner to the engineering department, stated that the consultant hired to decongest the rotary did not take into account all these options. This, despite the fact that the Indian Road Congress mandates exhaustion of all avenues of traffic management before a call on a flyover is taken. The alternatives were ignored even when the consultant for the project itself stated, “congestion presently at Tribune Chowk would be moved towards further junctions if Tribune flyover is constructed”.
*All alternatives extracted from letters written by the UT urban planning department to UT engineering department, accessed under the RTI Act.
