Automated parking lot opens in Sarojini market

With the city’s first automated multi-level parking facility — with a capacity for 824 cars — being inaugurated in Sarojini Nagar on Thursday, parking in the area will now be a hassle-free affair.

With the city’s first automated multi-level parking facility — with a capacity for 824 cars — being inaugurated in Sarojini Nagar on Thursday, parking in the area will now be a hassle-free affair.

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All shoppers will be required to do is leave their vehicles on the ground floor of the facility. Using pallet technology, the vehicle will be lifted and parked at a vacant spot.

Named ‘South Square’, the facility is expected to ease congestion on the roads and bylanes of the busy market.

The parking facility has been built on a public-private-partnership basis between the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) and construction giant DLF at a cost of R80 crore.

Seven levels of the facility —from 2nd floor to 8th floor — have been dedicated for parking, while the ground and first floor will have commercial outlets such as shops and restaurants.

The retail space will also provide house kiosks that can be converted into seasonal market spaces or festive fairs.

Officials said the automated car park facility required less building volume and ground space, as compared to conventional parking lots.

South Square has a state-of-the-art security system and car scanning technology, which will also ensure safety of the cars.

The facility was inaugurated by union urban development minister Kamal Nath and chief minister Sheila Dikshit in the presence of NDMC chairperson Archana Arora.

Dikshit expressed hope that with facilities similar to this one being constructed in the city parking woes in the Capital would end by 2012.

Another one at Baba Kharak Singh Marg next yr

Besides the automated Sarojini Nagar multi-level parking, the city will also see the inauguration of a similar parking facility at Baba Kharak Singh Marg early next year.

Officials of the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) have said that a new parking lot may also come up near Khan Market that will remove the long-standing problem of congestion in the area.

Chief minister Sheila Dikshit requested union urban development minister Kamal Nath for a plot of land for the project on Thursday. Nath assured her that his ministry would facilitate the allotment of suitable plots by DDA or land and building department.

The multilevel parking at Baba Kharak Singh Marg will accommodate 1,408 cars and will cater to traffic coming to Connaught Place from Gol Dak Khana and Talkatora Road.

Though the building is ready, authorities are still awaiting clearance from the Delhi Pollution Control Board before it can be thrown open to the public.

Another multi-level parking lot planned by NDMC at Kasturba Gandhi Marg has been put on hold indefinitely.

The Archeological Survey of India objected to the construction as the site was within the regulated zone of heritage structure, Agrasen ki Baoli.

According to the Ancient Monuments and Archeological Sites and Remains Act, no construction activity is allowed within 200 metres’ radius of a protected monument.

For 300 metres beyond this — termed as the regulated zone — the construction agency would require the ASI’s permission to go ahead with its activities.