Project Highlights

• Central Vista Redevelopment Project or Central Vista Projects, refers to the ongoing redevelopment to revamp Central Vista - the administrative heart of the Union Government of India.
• Originally designed by Edwin Lutyens and Herbert Baker during British colonial rule, the central administrative area will be altered and retrofitted with modern state-of-the-art infrastructural facilities to meet the demand of the current administrative requirements. 
• The ambitious project, headed by CPWD (Central Public Works Department), will be built at a cost of INR 13,450 crore (USD 1.7 billion) in a span of six years between 2020 to 2026.

Location of the Project

Central Vista is located at Lutyens', Raisina Hill, New Delhi.

Central Vista Project Background

The current Central Vista dates back to the British Colonial Period when the administrative capital was shifted from Kolkata (Calcutta) to New Delhi. A new city was built to house the administrative divisions along with all the supporting infrastructure and facilities.

The task to develop the new admin capital was given to Edwin Lutyens and Herbert Baker.  As part of the plan, a new Viceroy House (later became the Rashtrapati Bhavan - the official residence of the President of India, Council House(later became the Parliament House of India), North Block, South Block, and Record Office (later National Archive) were built for smooth functioning of the imperial government. 

After India’s independence in 1947, the government retained the administrative buildings. However, in the decades following, new buildings were constructed to accommodate the contemporary demands of office spaces and changing infrastructural needs.

Since the new developments were impromptu and not according to Lutyen’s original master plan, Central Vista lost the original symmetry, and aesthetics and also became gradually inefficient for smooth functioning after 75 years of independence.

Also, Delhi’s seismic zone changed to zone 4 from zone 2 and the growing strength needed better and more efficient fire safety measures. Therefore, a revamped Central Vista was conceived to be the solution.

Central Vista Project – Scope

The Central Vista Redevelopment Plan is proposed to meet the present and future infrastructure needs of space for the Parliament, Ministries, and Departments. The project also aims to provide better public facilities, social amenities, tourist attractions, parking facilities, etc. 

Under this ambitious project, 18 new buildings will be constructed and a dozen buildings, including Udyog Bhawan, Shastri Bhawan, Nirman Bhawan, and IGNCA (Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts) will be demolished.