NDMC plans makeover for key Lutyens’ Delhi properties

The New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) has initiated the process to redevelop some of the most prominent properties and underused spaces in Lutyens’ Delhi, including the Khan Market Community Centre, the city’s first shopping mall Super Bazar, Akbar Bhawan and Shaheed Bhagat Singh Place (SBS Place) near Gole Market, senior civic officials said on Wednesday

The New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) has initiated the process to redevelop some of the most prominent properties and underused spaces in Lutyens’ Delhi, including the Khan Market Community Centre, the city’s first shopping mall Super Bazar, Akbar Bhawan and Shaheed Bhagat Singh Place (SBS Place) near Gole Market, senior civic officials said on Wednesday.

Civic body has invited bids to appoint transaction advisors for the four projects, officials aware of the matter said. (HT Archive)

The civic body has invited bids to appoint transaction advisors for the four projects, officials aware of the matter said. The consultants will assess the existing structures, determine the properties’ valuations and recommend models for monetisation and commercial redevelopment. NDMC has set a timeline of around eight months to complete the assessment and planning process, they said.

A transaction advisor is a consulting firm that typically brings together technical, financial and legal experts to help government agencies structure large infrastructure or redevelopment projects. Its work can include value-for-money assessments, market testing and feasibility studies to establish whether a project is commercially and technically viable.

Civic officials said the four properties are located in prime areas of the Capital and cover large tracts of land that are either underutilised or lying abandoned and in a dilapidated condition.

“The advisor will also examine whether the existing structures can be redeveloped without demolition or whether the buildings have to be completely razed to begin commercial utilisation from scratch,” an official said.

The Khan Market Community Centre, a nearly 15-acre complex behind the upscale market, has been divided into five units: Lok Nayak Bhawan (9,659 sq m), NDMC staff quarters (9,588 sq m), CPWD staff quarters (19,737 sq m), a multi-level car parking plot (8,920 sq m), and Prithviraj Market with its common parking spaces (12,975 sq m).

The staff quarters are vacant and in a dilapidated condition and may have to be demolished for redevelopment, an official said. The existing open parking area serving Khan Market and Prithviraj Market could also be considered for an underground multi-level parking facility with a commercial component, the official added.

Sanjiv Mehra, president of the Khan Market Traders Association (KMTA), said discussions on redevelopment within Khan Market were taking place separately and were not part of this particular project. “We have not been consulted on the redevelopment of these surrounding markets and areas. The Lok Nayak Bhawan and staff quarters might have to be demolished. We hope the authorities hold a consultative process on parking, pedestrian movement and the impact on the market,” he said.

Another property on the list is Super Bazar, located near Shankar Market on the Outer Circle of Connaught Place. The six-storey supermarket, regarded as Delhi and India’s first, was a city landmark for decades. Launched by the Central government in 1966, months after the 1965 India-Pakistan war, it was intended to help keep rising prices in check. It became popular for offering groceries, household goods, clothes and other everyday items under one roof.

Its fortunes began to decline in the mid-1990s, and it shut down in 2002 after accumulating heavy losses. The losses, which began in 1996, were attributed to “overstaffing, failure of management, inadequacy of working capital, and a lack of competitive approach on part of the management”.

The building has remained locked for more than two decades amid prolonged arbitration proceedings involving employee unions over the closure and payment of their dues. NDMC has estimated the cost of appointing a transaction advisor for Super Bazar at ₹2.25 crore. The bidding process will begin with the submission of proposals, for which December 1 is the deadline.

The other two properties identified for redevelopment are Akbar Bhawan in Chanakyapuri and SBS Place near Gole Market.

Akbar Bhawan, located on Satya Marg, has an available floor area of approximately 9,200 sq m. The building was originally constructed as the Akbar Hotel in the 1960s but shut down in April 1986. It was subsequently converted into a government office complex and renamed Akbar Bhawan.

The property is owned by NDMC, which has earmarked ₹3.35 crore for appointing a transaction advisor to assess its monetisation potential.

Officials said the advisors would examine the properties’ existing condition, valuation and redevelopment possibilities before recommending a commercial model for each. The assessment, valuation and preparation of redevelopment reports for all four properties are expected to be completed within eight months.