SC panel allows ‘temporary roads’ in Delhi Ridge for Metro station

The Neb Sarai Metro station is part of the under-construction Golden Line (Aerocity-Tughlakabad) under DMRC’s Phase 4 expansion

The Supreme Court-appointed Central Empowered Committee (CEC) has granted the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) permission to temporarily use 1.23 hectares of forest land within the southern and morphological Ridge to divert traffic during the construction of the Neb Sarai Metro station.

In its recommendation dated November 6, the CEC said DMRC may use the Ridge via two alternate routes. (HT Archive)

However, the committee emphasised to authorities that no trees must be felled for this diversion, and directed that DMRC must “return the Ridge back to its original state” once the construction is complete.

The Neb Sarai Metro station is part of the under-construction Golden Line (Aerocity-Tughlakabad) under DMRC’s Phase 4 expansion.

The proposal to use the alternate route through the Ridge on a short-term basis was earlier in April approved by the Ridge Management Board (RMB). However, the Supreme Court must still provide the final clearance for the project.

In its recommendation dated November 6, the CEC said DMRC may use the Ridge via two alternate routes, which will be covered with temporary paver blocks to facilitate vehicular movement. This diversion is aimed at alleviating congestion from an existing 3.5-meter-wide alternate route that passes through narrow bylanes near the main IGNOU Road, where construction activities are underway.

The route chalked out already consists of dirt trails and barren land, the CEC observed.

The first route will push traffic from IGNOU towards Mehrauli-Badarpur Road or Saket Metro station, bypassing Neb Sarai by entering Freedom Fighter Enclave and exiting near Garden of Five Senses.

The second route bypasses Neb Sarai by entering Freedom Fighter Enclave, passing through Saidulajab Park and later merging with traffic at Westend Marg.

DMRC, in its proposal to RMB in April 2 this year, had said the Neb Sarai station construction area occupies around 14 metres of the road, leaving very little space for traffic to pass through. An alternate route is even narrower – only 3.5 metres wide, thus requiring the need for road traffic to be moved to alternate routes through nearby forest areas, it said, pointing out that the use of heavy machinery was also resulting in traffic snarls.

RMB passed the proposal in April, and the file was sent to CEC in the same month.

In its report, the committee stated that the project is in public interest, CEC said the Delhi metro could not proceed with construction of the station as there was no space left to divert traffic.

“To reduce the delay in the construction of the Metro project, DMRC sought permission for the temporary diversion of traffic through two alternate routes involving Ridge Reserve Forest and Morphological Ridge Area to ease the traffic situation,” said CEC, allowing the project to proceed, on the condition that DMRC barricades both sides of the alternate routes and ensures paver blocks are removed post construction.

“The project is in public interest and the land being used for construction of the temporary routes is bare minimum required. It also noted that the proposal is site-specific and the work of this Metro station cannot be completed without appropriate diversion of traffic,” it added.

Environmental activist Bhavreen Kandhari, however, said that no project, no matter how essential, should be granted exemptions to use the Ridge. “The question is, can we temporarily give away a part of our lungs? It is the same thing, as the Ridge is a part of Delhi’s lungs. Be it metro, or road projects, we cannot allow land in the forest to be used,” she said.