Business hit, traders want CP subway project stalled

Traders in Connaught Place have given New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) till next Monday to reconsider ongoing construction of subways in the area.

The civic body has taken up construction of eight subways in the Outer Circle, in view of Commonwealth Games on December 25, which has led to traffic disruption in the area.

As a result, business of traders in the area has taken a major hit, with sales down by 60 per cent.

“We met some NDMC officials on Friday to ask them to defer the ongoing subway work, till after the Games, along with the work of service ducting, laying of cables and pipelines underground, taking place in the Middle Circle,” said Atul Bhargava, president of New Delhi Traders’ Association (NDTA).

“None of these construction activities will be completed before the Games but will lead to a major loss of business for us. If clients head to other markets, it’ll be impossible to get them back,” he added.

“We are trying our best to complete the work on-time. All these construction activities have to be taken up in a sequence and can’t be deferred for later. We have got all clearances from the traffic police and the work has to meet a deadline,” said Anand Tiwari, spokesperson, NDMC.

“If NDMC doesn’t revert by Monday 3 pm, we will have to decide on our further course of action, as we cannot keep quiet anymore. We will either have to meet senior government officials on this issue or resort to other means to save our business,” said Bhargava.

“For months now, we have been trying to tell NDMC to identify alternative parking sites but they chose to ignore our pleas,” he added.

Traders claim it is impossible for people to walk around and drive in CP due to the barricading. NDMC sources said while tunnelling work would be complete before the Games, they would not be able to transfer the cables and pipelines underground, defeating the purpose of digging up the area.