NMC to hand over all shops under Tekdi flyover to Metro next week
| Date :15-Jun-2023 |
Principal Correspondent
For the last three years, the authorities concerned are trying to take up the work of demolition of Tekdi flyover, but owners of the shops continue to remain a major hurdle. Fortunately, Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC), on the basis of verdicts delivered by the courts, acted fast. This has resulted in clearing all the shops, except 20. Of 175 shops under the Tekdi flyover, the issue of only 20 shops is pending as far as handing them over to Maha Metro is concerned. NMC will finalise the process in next week following which which, Metro will start demolishing the ‘Design Disaster’.
Deputy Municipal Commissioner Milind Meshram, who is also the in-charge of Tax Department, told ‘The Hitavada’, “Of total 175 shops, we have vacated 120 and handed them over to Maha Metro. Of remaining 55, as per the orders of the High Court we have allotted the shops at the new place on the land owned by Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) to 35 owners. These people purchased the shops but did not vacate their existing establishments under the flyover. Owners of 15 shops got compensation and they have withdrawn the amount from their bank accounts. Owners of the remaining 20 shops have different issue as some want compensation while some want shops at the alternate site. We will be settling these issues by next week. We will start clearing it from June 19 onwards.”
NMC will hand over the flyover to Nagpur Metro and its demolition will start in next 15 days. ‘The Hitavada’ has been constantly raising the issue of Tekdi flyover terming it as Design Disaster. Unfortunately, the city fathers did not realise it till the Ram Jhula came into existence. The flyover became a major traffic hurdle. Those using it regularly remain confused, so do the administration and traffic cops. Sans the guidance of cops, the commuters started using the area as per their whims and fancies. In fact, reputed institute Visvesvaraya National Institute of Technology (VNIT) had advised the then administration not to go with the plan of construction of this bridge as it could be a disaster, but nobody paid attention to that.
Union Minister Nitin Gadkari in 2020 had taken up the issue and had asked the authorities to speed up the work of demolition. But it did not move by even an inch. The shopping complex was constructed for shop-owners who run their small businesses under the bridge. According to plans, apart from the demolition of Tekdi flyover, stretching of Ramjhula to PNB and construction of underpass were completed. Statue of Sant Tulsidas at Manas chowk will be shifted at a suitable site near the square. According to experts, the temple is not an obstacle. Unfortunately, the then civic body did not take stakeholders into consideration, so now demolishing it also would burden the exchequer by over Rs 18.51 crore. It was on May 27, 2008, that the flyover, became functional. Shockingly, the flyover did not have the approval of competent authority even then.