On the lookout since February 2015, MCG’s quest for office faces further delay

The proposal for constructing the office of Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) in Sector 14 is set for further delay as the entire project is being redesigned,

The proposal for constructing the office of Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) in Sector 14 is set for further delay as the entire project is being redesigned, said officials on Thursday.

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In December last year, MCG had floated a ₹111.22 crore tender for constructing the building at a vacant plot next to Vyapar Sadan.

The designs of this building had already been approved by the directorate of urban local bodies (ULB) that led to the tender being subsequently floated for the project. However, the officials later realised that the entry to the building from the direction of the Old Delhi-Gurgaon Road had little space while the visibility of the building from that direction was also an issue. Hence, officials are now redesigning the entire project towards the direction of Mehrauli-Gurgaon (MG) Road.

“The project is being redesigned as there was little space to enter from the Old-Delhi Gurgaon Road side in the original design. Plus the view of the building from the main road was also obstructed,” Gopal Kahlawat, executive engineer, MCG.

Kahlawat said that ND Vashisht, chief engineer, MCG is supervising the project. Vashisht was not available for a project.

Important landmarks such as Signature Towers, Civil Hospital, Head Post Office, and Gurugram interstate bus terminal are located in close proximity to the proposed site.

The MCG moved to its main office in Sector 34 in February 2015. The three-storey building is owned by the Haryana Shahri Vikas Pradhikaran (HSVP) and the MCG pays them a rent of ₹20 lakh every month. Sector 34, an industrial sector, is located near Hero Honda Chowk, on the outskirts of the city, and access to it is a major problem for residents. The MCG has been looking to build its own office ever since it moved there.

In addition, to the high rent and distance, space is a major problem in the Sector 34 office. The MCG last year shifted its entire Zone 3 operations from this office to a community centre in Sector 42 on July 12, last year.

The new building officials said will have three floors reserved for basement parking, two floors for commercial ventures, one floor for cafeteria, while the remaining nine floors is reserved for offices. Each of the basement floors will have space to accommodate over 100 vehicles while top-most floor will have a covered terrace with a facade cladding covering.

Officials said that the ground and first floor will be used for commercial operations for recovering the building cost, similar to HSVP’s multilevel parking in sector 29 which has leased spaces to a clothing retailer outlet, automobile showroom and three restaurants.

Officials said the building is expected to take 22 months to construct from the date of commencement.

It was during a house meeting in November 2017 that the proposal for constructing MCG’s office next to Vyapar Sadan was approved.

Incidentally, in July 2013, MCG had also written to the ULB for building its office at the proposed site in Vyapar Sadan. However, due to lack of available funds at the time, they opted for the Sector 34 office instead.