Major civic projects delayed, pandemic blamed

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1/3 Sports complex, behind nest Deadline: April 2020

2/3 Work on the 8,710 m² SVP multi-level car park began on March 3, 2019.

3/3 The steel bridge will use 2,100 tonnes of steel (PICS: Ancela Jamindar)

Four major projects worth more than Rs 150 crore on the Sabarmati Riverfront have been delayed for more than a year with the corona pandemic cited as the reason. The question then arises as to whether the projects were really affected by the pandemic or have the entrepreneurs used the pandemic as a shield and escaped sanctions? is due for completion in February 2020, but this has not happened. Another sports complex of Rs 15 crore was due to arrive behind the NID by April 2020, but the work is far from complete. A multi-level car park was to be built behind the SVP hospital by September 2020 at a cost of around Rs 60 crore, but this is still a work in progress. Work on the iconic pedestrian bridge (FOB) was due to be completed in October 2020 at a cost of Rs 74 crore, but that too is almost a year late.

Civic works were extended in the name of the pandemic, but in reality the contractors were granted an extension and escaped the fine, AMC sources said.

AMC’s Sabarmati Riverfront Development Corporation Limited (SRFDCL) began work on the 8,710m² SVP multi-level parking lot on March 3, 2019. The project completion date was set for September 5, 2020 when its bid of Rs 59.87 crore was fined, but the work was not completed on time.

The built-up area of ​​the car park is set at 38,725 m², including 1,800 m² for commercial use, including 18 shops. The facility will house 170 cars in the basement, with provision for 1,000 more mechanically parked cars in the future. There are plans to place an automatic electronic display system throughout the facility – basement, six floors and terraces – showing the total number of parking spaces available on each floor at entry points. The place where the car is parked will be notified on the screen by a system of sensors. Each floor will have an E zone for electric vehicles. It is also planned to build an aerial walkway between the car park and the flower garden and the event grounds. The project has been delayed for 10 months and no completion date has been announced.

As for the Shahpur sports complex, the project was due to be completed by February 15, 2020 but is not yet complete.

Another project – a pedestrian bridge between the Sardar Bridge and Ellisbridge – was due to be built by September 30, 2020, but it is unlikely to be completed even by December 2021, sources said. This steel bridge will use 2,100 metric tons of steel, an iron pipe structure and a stretched canvas roof, RCC pile foundations and steel support, concrete floor, planters with steel railings. stainless steel and glass. Dynamic multi-colored LED lights will also be installed.

Asked about the delays, an AMC official said: “Four projects along the Sabarmati River have been affected due to the pandemic. Projects are behind schedule, but are expected to be completed by December. It can vary from a month or two.

Civic sources, however, said: “Two sports complexes were due to be completed between February and April 2020, but were delayed by more than a year. The contractors were granted an extension due to the pandemic, although no sanctions were imposed on them. The iconic pedestrian walkway was due to be completed in October 2020, which means at least 60 to 70 percent of the work should have been completed by March before the start of the pandemic. The project is now expected to be completed by December 2021. Sources added that most of the projects should have been ready before the AMC election, but failed to do so.

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