Track Nation Next on Social Media

Nagpur News Social

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.

 

Continue Reading
Click to comment
Subscribe
Notify of
guest
0 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments

Nagpur News

RMBRCN celebrates Charter Presentation & Installation, Rina Sinha becomes Charter President

Published

on

The Rotary Means Business chapter of Rotary Club Of Nagpur (RMBRCN) celebrated their Charter Presentation and Installation of Board on September 17, 2023 in a crisp official ceremony at Hotel Centre Point, Nagpur.

Rotary Means Business encourages Rotarians to support the success of their fellow Rotarians by doing business with them and by referring others to them.

Charter President Past President Rtn Rina Sinha presided over the ceremony. Renowned entrepreneur and Rotarian Aspi Bapuna, Chairman of Bapuna Group, was the Chief Guest and  Rtn Namita Sharma, President of RCN, was the Guest of Honour.

The Board of Directors of RMBRCN include Rtn Navneet Jain, Vice President, Rtn Mohammed Master, Honorary Secretary, Rtn Sanjay Aggarwal Treasurer, Rtn Rakhi Bhatia Director Chapter Service, Rtn Rahul Shrivastava, Director Vocational Service, Dr Ruchi Choudhry, Director Membership Development, Ranjana Duseja, Director Attendance.

Past Rotary District Governor (PDG) Shabbir Shakir, Past Presidents- Bharat Goenka , Khushnoor Chugh, Sanjiv Chugh, Akhtar Parvez, Tejinder Singh Rawal, Alok Goenka,  Jerestine Watchmaker, Sandeep Dhodapkar, Sanjay Arora, President RMB Nagpur, and Behram Patel and Amitabh Sinha were present.

President Rina Sinha informed that within a short period of its formation already 48 members representing various businesses  have joined the chapter and the numbers are increasing . The Chapter has already crossed 5 crores of business amongst their members and RMB will further strengthen Rotary in membership growth and retention .

Chief Guest Rtn Aspi Bapuna lauded the chapter’s success and reiterated that its comfortable and safe to do business among fellow rotarians as all follow the Four Way Test of Rotary. Jerestine introduced President Rina. Aspi Bapuna  presented the charter and installed President Rina Sinha . Rtn Namita congratulated the RMB chapter and informed that this is the new initiative at RCN.The Board was installed by Rina Sinha and all members were installed by the Past Presidents. An exclusive digital Monthly Magazine ‘Growth Engine’ was launched by Editor Niharika Chugh Vali.

 Navneet Jain and Rahul Choudhry conducted the referral and thank you session where enthusiastic members informed about their successful business details. Nishchay Sinha launched the social media and MYRMB app which connects members to other chapters digitally, Treasurer Sanjay Agarwal gave treasurers report, Rtn Rakhi Bhatia managed the event. Rtn Parag Datey and Niharika were the Masters of Ceremony (MOCs). Secretary Mohammed Master proposed the formal Vote of Thanks .

Also read: Jayaswal Neco group celebrate BL Shaw’s 90th Birthday, 50th Founder’s Day in a huge gala event in Nagpur

Continue Reading

Nagpur News

Nitin Gadkari inaugurates double-decker electric bus availed for senior citizens in Nagpur

Published

on

Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari, on Saturday, inaugurated the double-decker electric bus designed for senior citizens in Nagpur. The initiative has been undertaken in association with Ashok Leyland’s CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) Committee and Jyeshtha Nagarik Pratishthan.

Executive President of Jyeshtha Nagarik Pratishthan Datta Meghe, Vice Chairman of Ashok Leyland Limited Yash Sachar, CEO of Switch Mobility Mahesh Babu, and other dignitaries were present during the inauguration.

“I am very thankful to Ashok Leyland’s electric vehicle arm ‘Switch Mobility’ for donating an electric bus for our senior citizens. The bus can hold a capacity of 65 people and will benefit a lot to disabled and senior citizens,” Gadkari said.

“We already have a green Electra bus available to us for the past five to six years. Krishna Reddy has taken the responsibility of repairing and providing air-conditioning to the bus, moreover, he is providing us with one additional bus. A Tata Motor bus will be arriving this month as well, giving us a total of four buses to operate. This will solve the issue of waiting list due to the lack of buses for senior citizens in the city.” he added.

With the help of these buses, senior citizens can avail the benefit of free trips to religious places like Ambhora, Adasa, Shegaon, Mahur, Dhapewada, and Kalamb.

Also read: NMC confiscates 117 PoP idols, collects Rs 10,000 fine from seller

 

Continue Reading

Nagpur News

Nagpur: Married man accused of girlfriend’s rape commits suicide on Facebook live

Published

on

A 38-year-old married man named Manish alias Raj Yadav, on Sunday, committed suicide during a Facebook live-stream after allegedly being accused of rape by his girlfriend and her family in Nagpur.

During the live stream, Manish, who was married and a father to three children, stated that his 19-year-old girlfriend, Kajal, along with her family members demanded a sum of five lakh rupees and threatened to press charges of rape if he failed to do so.

On September 6, the situation became grave as the woman’s family accused him of eloping after Kajal went missing from her residence.

The deceased refused the claims of having any sexual relationship with the woman and identified her, her family, and a photo studio operator responsible for his condition. He, then, jumped into the river.

After the live video surfaced online, Kalamna Police launched a search operation and recovered the deceased’s body from the river. Four people have been detained in the case for questioning. Further investigation is underway.

Also read: NMC confiscates 117 PoP idols, collects Rs 10,000 fine from seller

Continue Reading
Advertisement
0
Would love your thoughts, please comment.x
()
x