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Shift Ajni metro project to Khapri; develop Art District instead: Nagpur activist Jaydeep Das

NGO Paryavaran Prerna Vidarbha, on Saturday, organised a press conference regarding the proposed Inter Modal Station (IMS) project in Ajni Vann, at Press Club of Nagpur, Civil lines.

 

Environmental activist Anusuya Kale Chhabrani and conservation architect Sandeep Pathe were the key speakers during the conference.

 

The activists proposed several eco-friendly alternatives like art district, art gallery, train museum and nature trail in Ajni Railway Colony, that could generate revenue in the area, instead of the IMS project.

 

About Intermodal Station:

 

The intermodal concept of transport supports the integration of related transportation modes. It is a movement that aims to effectively connect railways with other transportation modes with rail stations functioning as transport interchanges. Such planned development makes transport linkages appear more attractive for commuters in comparison with other private transportation options, thus expanding the reach of public transport.

 

Commercial developments also receive a boost from the higher passenger traffic, which in turn boost economic activity in cities. An IMS can significantly alter the socio-economic landscape of a region. IMS is also expected to dissipate the pressure that arises from other standalone transport hubs, like bus terminals and railway stations. Promoting the use of public transportation through the efficient use of ring roads and National Highways will also help the effort to decongest India’s transport networks.

 

“Art district in Ajni Railway Colony will provide a wider platform for people of Nagpur. From the case studies we can see a pragmatic transformation of streetscapes and colonies into centres of community interaction, public art meetings and fests,” Pathe said during the conference. 

Conservation Architect Sandeep Pathe

Conservation Architect Sandeep Pathe

IMS project at Ajni will claim more than 7,000 trees in its Phase I and more than 40,000 trees in its remaining phases. In the name of development the felling of such a huge number of trees is not acceptable, Chhabrani said. 

Anusuya Kale Chhabrani

Anusuya Kale Chhabrani

Environmental activist Jaydeep Das told Nation Next, The conference broadly highlighted that the IMS project at Ajni was a wrong choice of location, and instead Khapri could be a better choice for the development of the project.

 

We also highlighted that how the present location in Ajni, which is already having a good green cover as well as good heritage structures of railway can be used as an Art district- the concept that has been already implemented in several cities including Mumbai, Chennai, Delhi, etc., where art and nature collab together, and is also a revenue generating model, he said.

 

IMS stations in bigger cities like Chennai, which has the biggest bus terminus Chennai Moffusil Bus Terminus, covers the area of 37 Acres. The area of bus terminus in Delhi covers 25 acres and in Hyderabad covers 30 acres only. The population, and population growth in such cities is comparatively much more than in Nagpur, which has an average population of around 30 lakhs to the most. The population growth in Nagpur is 1.62% only.

 

So, even if we project the population of Nagpur in 50 years, we wouldn’t be able to reach the one crore population mark in 2050. There is a clear miss-match in terms of area, that is being proposed for the IMS project in Nagpur. The government has proposed the area of 44 acres, including 163 bus bays only for the phase I of this project. There has been a wrong calculation, our population does not require feasibility of such a vast IMS project, he said.

 

In just 44 acres, there are 7,000 trees, imagine over 40,000 trees are going to be cut for the IMS project in Ajni, which is the last green patch in Central Nagpur to be cut, and would be extremely damaging to the micro-climate of the region.

 

If the project is shifted in the Khapri, there is an availability of the government land, and the area lacks of green cover, which would prevent the environmental damage in the Ajni area.

 

While referencing Amravati Road, Wardha Road or Civil Lines Road, even if two buses are parked on the road, it creates huge traffic jam in the area. Problem with the IMS project is that, all the buses would be coming to the heart of the city, which would create a huge problem of traffic congestion in future.

 

When people question that Khapri comes in the outskirts of the city and how people would transport till there, purpose of the IMS project is to travel out of the city. If IMS project is shifted into Khapri, it would bring utility of Metro into good question.

 

Today, citizens are using these metros for birthdays, haldi-kunkus and other celebrations only. However, with the project built at Khapri, people would actually use metro to go there, he said.

 

Lastly, the feasibility study, that has been done for the IMS project, whoever prepared the project report had said that a person from Wardha would come to Nagpur via bus, catch a train and go to some another place or vice versa, which is quite hilarious to listen.

 

Today, all these busses or rails are well-connected via roads or railway routes, why would someone from Delhi come to Nagpur, if they have a direct rout connectivity to Wardha? Hence the project is not well conceived or planned on what type of connectivity would be used. There is only one mode of transport in Nagpur, which is not there in nearby cities, that is Airport. So even if someone lands in Nagpur to reach Wardha or other neighbouring cities, they could use Khapri station, which is closer to Airport as well. Why would someone want to divert traffic inside the city and create congestion? Hence, the planning itself is flawed in the first place, Das said.

 

Today in Nagpur, if someone is interested in visiting cultural art work South Central Zone Cultural Centre (SCZCC), a small 2.5 acre land, is the only place dedicated for it, and is rushed with huge amount of crowd there.

 

Heritages in Ajni itself could be converted into good art structures for revenue generation, if handed over to proper entities in the field, which would amount to cutting no single tree in the area as well as maintaining these places, he added.

 

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