Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday inagurated newly redeveloped Chandni Chowk market and announced that the entire area will be transformed into a tourist hub by allowing street food joints to operate till midnight. Earlier the project was to be inaugurated on April 17 this year but was cancelled due to the second wave of COVID-19.
During the inauaguration ceremony, the CM said, "Delhi is identified by Chandni Chowk in the world. It used to have cracked roads, traffic jams and loose wires. Delhi govt has completed its 3-year development project for Chandni Chowk."
"It has already become an important tourist place. I came to know that people come here to roam till 12 am. Street food joints will be allowed to open for 3-4 more hours till 12 am so that people can come here in the night and enjoy. Lots of street food joints will be opened after closure of the market," Kejriwal announced.
Addressing the gathering near Fountain Chowk in the Chandni Chowk main market, Kejriwal said that after the redevelopment, Chandni Chowk has become more beautiful and people come here to walk till midnight.
Kejriwal said that earlier broken roads, dangling wires, traffic congestion were synonymous with Chandni Chowk but now it has become beautiful and aesthetically appealing.
In the redevelopment project, the main Chandni Chowk stretch between the Red Fort and the Fatehpuri Masjid crossing has been improved and beautified. The stretch has been developed as a pedestrian friendly corridor and made aesthetically appealing with the help of red granite stone, decorative lights and plants and street furniture etc.
According to PWD officials, the project was approved in August 2018 and work on it began in December 2018. It was to be completed in March 2020 but the project got delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic and its deadline was further pushed to December 2020.
(With agency inputs)
