Centre selects Gujarat-based firm to redevelop Parliament and Central Vista

The revamp project, for which the Central Public Works Department invited bids in September, would make “Delhi a world-class capital city using technology and green construction befitting a country like India.”

Gujarat-based HCP Design, Planning and Management has been awarded the contract to redevelop Parliament and Central Vista, Urban Affairs Minister of State (independent charge) Hardeep Singh Puri announced on Friday.

Time has come now to build modern, world class and energy efficient buildings, Mr. Puri declared in a media conference in New Delhi.

Reiterating that the buildings built between 1911 and 1930 — the Parliament House, North and South Blocks and Rashtrapati Bhavan — would “remain intact”, Mr. Puri said there are no plans to damage heritage structures.

The revamp project, for which the Central Public Works Department invited bids in September, would make “Delhi a world-class capital city using technology and green construction befitting a country like India.”

Six design and architecture firms had submitted bids for the project. The jury’s views were unanimous, said Mr. Puri.

The Ahmedabad-based HCP, founded by architect Hasmukh C. Patel in 1960, has worked in several projects in the last six decades, including the refurbishment of the Eden Gardens stadium in Kolkata, IIM-Ahmedabad flyover, and the Aga Khan Academy in Hyderabad.

The firm was also involved in the Sabarmati Riverfront Development Project where Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently held a mammoth event to celebrate Mahatma Gandhi’s 150th birth anniversary.

Mr. Puri said he expects the final cost to be 40% less than the estimate.

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