NGT nod to build parking lots below four green areas in Noida
The Noida Authority on Monday said that the National Green Tribunal has given its approval for construction of double-basement parking facilities under city parks.
The Noida authority on Monday said that the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has given its approval for construction of double-basement parking facilities under city parks. However, the authority had already started work on these parking lots being built in the industrial sectors 1, 3 and 5. The authority will soon begin work on a parking facility under the sector 58 park too.
“We had started work on parking lots under parks in sectors 1, 3 and 5 as we knew the NGT would give its approval. We told the NGT that in the absence of a parking lot in these industrial areas, motorists park on the roads, leading to traffic congestion,” said Arun Vir Singh, additional chief executive officer (ACEO), Noida authority.
Local environmentalists had objected to the authority’s move in 2014 when the project was conceived. In the beginning of 2014, the Supreme Court-appointed environment pollution (Prevention and Control) authority (EPPCA) had directed the authority not to damage parks for building parking facilities. However, in September 2015, the EPPCA gave its green signal to the Noida authority’s project of building double-basement parking lots under four city parks.
However, the EPPCA had allowed the authority to build parking facilities only under parks of over 5,000 square metres.
“On Saturday, we received a letter from NGT allowing these parking facilities. We had to obtain permission because an environmentalist had gone to the NGT objecting to parking facilities,” said the ACEO.
The authority has already started work on three parking facilities in parks of industrial sectors 1, 3 and 5, in order to address the issue of lack of parking space. These three parking facilities will be ready by the end of 2017, said officials.
NEW PARKING LOTS IN NOIDA
Sector 1: B-block park (11,440 sq m)
Sector 3: F-block park (8,395 sq m)
Sector 5 :Harola village park (6,971.58 sq m)
Sector 58: Block-B park (10,000 sq m)
