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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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Nagpur News

Nagpur doctor invited as key speaker at Joint American Homeopathic Conference 2023 in US

Published

6 hours ago

on

March 18, 2023

By

Radhika Dhawad | Nagpur
Homeopath from Nagpur Dr Kavita Chandak has been invited as a keynote speaker at the Joint American Homeopathic Conference 2023.

Dr Kavita Chandak

Homeopath from Nagpur Dr Kavita Chandak, who has two Golden Book Of World Records for treating kidney disorders and success in a case of Mucor mycosis in her name, has been invited as a keynote speaker at the Joint American Homeopathic Conference 2023  based on the theme, Homeopathy in 21st century at San Antonio in United States.  

In society, we get to see many cases where child born with mental or physical defects such as congenital heart defects, mental retardation, Down’s syndrome, Cleft palate, ADHD, Autism etc. though born from healthy parents. What could be the reason behind it? 

Could homeopathy offer something for it? Dr. Chandak will deliver a 90 minutes session on March 26 on ‘Advancing a Healthier Generation with Homeopathy: Preventative measures for healthy birth and treatment approaches for unimpaired growth.’

She will throw light on the pre-birth causes in mother disturbing the birth of healthy baby creating mental and physical defects as well the preventive measures for initiating the creation of strong generation with Homeopathy. 

Dr Chandak is an international trainer and speaker who has specialised in autism, psychiatric and behavioural disorders, kidney diseases and cancer. She has authored eight books and 294 health articles. She will be a keynote speaker in upcoming international congresses of Russia, Romania, Greece and the World Congress of Homeopathy, Colombia.

Also read: Ahead of C20, Ramdaspeth’s polluted Nag River concealed…

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Nagpur News

CAMIT Chief Dipen Agrawal nominated as member in CGSTGRC Nagpur zone

Published

6 hours ago

on

March 18, 2023

By

Radhika Dhawad | Nagpur
Chamber of Associations of Maharashtra Industry and Trade President Dr Dipen Agrawal said GST on MIDC-leasing land was affecting MSMEs.

Dipen Agrawal

Dr Dipen Agrawal, President – Chamber of Associations of Maharashtra Industry & Trade (CAMIT) has been nominated as member in Central Goods & Service Tax Grievance Redressal Committee (CGST GRC) Nagpur Zone.

At the outset Dr Dipen Agrawal while thanking Ramchandra Sankhla Chief Commissioner CGST, Vijay Rishi Commissioner Nagpur – 1 and Shri Abhay Kumar Commissioner Nagpur – 2 for giving representation to CAMIT in the recently reconstituted GRC for Nagpur Zone, said, the GRC has enabled revenue officers to have first-hand feedback on various policy initiatives undertaken by government. It also helped in ironing out the difficulties faced by trade in implementing provisions of GST, and to make GST a Grievance-free System of Taxation.

Dr Dipen Agrawal has appealed to fellow traders to forward/share their issues on [email protected] so as to get them addressed in the GRC Meetings. Active and quality participation of trade and professional associations in the committee will achieve the goals of resolving all grievances and issues faced by the tax collectors i.e. traders.

GRC is a platform to voice their grievances including procedural difficulties and IT related issues pertaining to GST and redressal at local level added Dr Agrawal.

Also read: NMC spends ₹20 crore on lighting trees for C20 in Nagpur

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Nagpur News

NMC spends ₹20 crore on lighting trees for C20 in Nagpur

Published

7 hours ago

on

March 18, 2023

By

Radhika Dhawad | Nagpur

NMC has spent a staggering ₹20 crore on the lighting of trees on both sides of the roads of airport road for C20 meet.

Ahead of the C20 meet, Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) has spent a staggering ₹20 crore on the lighting of trees on both sides of the roads of airport road, Wardha Road, Walker’s Street, airport road to RBI Square to name a few. 

NMC has spent a staggering ₹20 crore on the lighting of trees on both sides of the roads of airport road for C20 meet.

Also, over one lakh nails were hammered on 3000 trees for the installation of lights leaving several activists and residents irked. The C20 meet is scheduled for March 20 and 21 where hundreds of participants from 20 countries would be arriving in the city for a summit. 

Also read: Ahead of C20, Ramdaspeth’s polluted Nag River concealed…

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