DNA Special: Why were Rs 862 crore spent on new Parliament building when old Parliament exists?

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is all set to inaugurate the new Parliament building on May 28, but many opposition parties have decided to boycott the major ceremony. However, many have also raised this question – why is a new Parliament building needed when we already have an old Parliament building?

The current British-era Parliament building is 97 years old. Keeping in mind the changing needs, Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone of the new Parliament building on December 10, 2020, and within a record 21 months, this building has been ready for inauguration.

The present Parliament Building was completed in the year 1927, about 96 years ago, and then it was a unique and magnificent building in itself. But with the changing times, India's needs and aspirations also changed, and the new Parliament of India is a symbol of these changing needs and aspirations. On May 28, this new Parliament building will be dedicated to the people of India.

The new Parliament building has been designed by renowned architect Vimal Patel. Vimal Patel has designed many famous buildings including Kashi Vishwanath Corridor, Sabarmati River Front, and Gujarat High Court.

This new parliament building is a unique confluence of modernity with India's tradition... On the one hand, while it reflects the rich culture and heritage of India, on the other hand, it also has every modern technology and necessary facilities of the 21st century.

The new Parliament has two houses, one Lok Sabha and one Rajya Sabha. The Lok Sabha has been designed on the theme of The Peacock, the national bird of India, and will be able to seat 888 MPs of the Lok Sabha. At the same time, the Rajya Sabha has been built on the theme of India's national flower lotus and it will be able to seat 300 Rajya Sabha MPs.

Why is the new Parliament being built when the old one exists?

The first reason is that the existing Parliament building is very old. Actually, the construction of the current Parliament building started in the year 1921 and after about 6 years. It was inaugurated on January 18, 1927, by the then Viceroy Lord Irwin. In this sense, the current Parliament is almost 100 years old.

Apart from this, there are many problems related to security in the old building. For example, the existing Parliament building was built in seismic zone 2, while now Delhi falls in seismic zone IV. Not only this, fire safety in the old building is also a big concern, because the old Parliament building has not been designed according to the existing fire safety rules.

Apart from this, the current Parliament building is also far behind in technical terms, because here from audio-visual techniques to other things are also very old and the need for change was felt in them. Another reason is the lack of space and seating in the current Parliament building.

At present, India has a total of 543 Lok Sabha seats, while the Rajya Sabha has a total of 250 seats. But according to the new delimitation report, in the year 2026, the Lok Sabha seats in India will increase to more than 800, while the Rajya Sabha seats will also cross 300. That is, the total seats of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha in the country will be more than 1,100.

In this context, the old Parliament House has a seating capacity of 550 members in the Lok Sabha and 250 members in the Rajya Sabha. Only 440 MPs can sit in the Central Hall. That is, there is less space for the number of MPs currently in the current building of Parliament. In such a situation, if the recommendations of the new delimitation report are accepted, then a large number of MPs will not be able to get a place to sit.

That's why it was decided to build a new building for Parliament. The new Parliament building has a seating capacity of 888 members inside the Lok Sabha and 384 members inside the Rajya Sabha.

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