New Delhi Mar 20 PTI Endowed with a Mughal-style baradari and rich stocks of flowers a new heritage-themed park near Jama Masjid in old Delhi was inaugurated by President Ram Nath Kovind on Sunday The park was opened amid colourful cultural performances strains of classical music and traditional dance by a troupe of artists in the baradari which was decked up with flowers and a chandelier President Kovind inaugurated the park by unveiling a plaque He was also given a tour of the garden during his brief visit In the first phase an area of about 175 acres has been developed at an estimated cost of Rs 765 crore civic officials said After months of hard labour and meticulous planning the plot which was earlier covered in filth and encroached from multiple sides and often used by anti-social elements has been transformed into a beautiful park they said Conceived in 2017 the park has been built with North Delhi Municipal Corporations funds and contributions from various MPs cutting across party lines and former Union minister Vijay Goel officials had earlier said It has been developed using rich stocks of flowers and has structures built with traditional craftsmanship A white marble-made baradari pavilion with cusped arches is the centrepiece of this garden while red sandstone white marble Dholpur stone and Delhi quartzite stones have been used in the construction In the second phase of this urban renewal project the remaining 225 acres is to be developed at an estimated cost of Rs 1003 crore For the first phase the NDMC had arranged Rs 470 crore from its resources officials said The second phase also envisages reviving the old water stream referred to as nahar by locals that existed on a stretch located adjacent to the current boundary wall of the park they said The park is also endowed with Mughal-style chatris stone railings and lamp posts borrowing design elements from the Red Forts ramparts ornate gates a sunken open-air theatre and also has toilet facilities Delhi Lt Governor Anil Baijal Chief Secretary Vijay Dev mayors of three BJP-led municipal corporations -- Raja Iqbal Singh NDMC Mukesh Suryan SDMC and Shyam Sunder Aggarwal EDMC senior BJP leader Baijayant Panda and Rajya Sabha member Roopa Ganguly who also has contributed funds for the park were among those present on the occasion I am very happy to have contributed funds for this project through MPLADS and delighted to see this beautiful park finally being inaugurated today Heritage plays a very important role in any society and this is a great addition to the recreational spaces in Delhi Ganguly told PTI A food court area has also been developed said architect Kapil Aggarwal who designed the park The park sits in close proximity to the 17th century Jama Masjid and faces Red Fort a UNESCO World Heritage site on the other side We wanted visitors to feel the park was part of both the sites and therefore we chose heritage elements after careful research so that new structures would complement the existing heritage fabric of the region he added The part which is to be developed under the second phase is now slowly being barricaded and civic officials said work has begun to reclaim the neighbouring plot fully for the park project A senior NDMC official had earlier said the park has rich stocks of flowers and shrubberies including petunia dog flowers marigold carnation poinsettia ornamental cabbage croton and furcaria Once we open it to public there will be a nominal ticket fee he said Visitors will also get to enjoy delicious cuisine of Chandni Chowk and handicrafts of Old Delhi at the park officials said The park located opposite the Parade Ground parking facility was originally named Heritage Park The name of Charti Lal Goel former deputy mayor of the erstwhile unified Municipal Corporation of Delhi and first Speaker of the Delhi Legislative Assembly was later prefixed to it officials said A white marble bust of Charti Lal Goel father of Vijay Goel has also been installed near the ornately-carved baradari President Kovind garlanded the statue and also posed for some pictures An amount of Rs 1768 crore was required towards the completion of the project which has been planned in two phases officials said PTI KND CK

New Delhi Mar 20 PTI Endowed with a Mughal-style baradari and rich stocks of flowers a new heritage-themed park near Jama Masjid in old Delhi is all set to be inaugurated by President Ram Nath Kovind on Sunday eveningIn the first phase an area of about 175 acres has been developed at an estimated cost of Rs 765 crore civic officials saidThe plot which was earlier covered in filth encroached from multiple sides and often used by anti-social elements after months of hard labour and meticulous planning has been transformed into a beautiful park they saidConceived in 2017 the park has been built with North Delhi Municipal Corporations funds and contributions from various MPs cutting across party lines and former Union minister Vijay Goel officials had earlier saidIt has been developed using rich stocks of flowers and has structures built with traditional craftsmanship A white marble-made baradari pavilion with cusped arches is the centrepiece of this garden while red sandstone white marble Dholpur stone and Delhi quartzite stones have been used in the constructionIn the second phase of this urban renewal project the remaining 225 acres is to be developed at an estimated cost of Rs 1003 crore For the first phase the NDMC had arranged Rs 470 crore from its resources officials saidThe second phase also envisages reviving the old water stream referred to as nahar by locals that existed on a stretch located adjacent to the current boundary wall of the park they saidThe park is also endowed with Mughal-style chatris stone railings and lamp posts borrowing design elements from the Red Forts ramparts ornate gates a sunken open-air theatre and also has toilet facilitiesA food court area is also being developed said architect Kapil Aggarwal who designed the parkWe are feeling very excited to showcase this Heritage Park to the President of India after which people would be able to enjoy it A play by well-known theatre personality Aamir Raza Husain would also be hosted during the inauguration event for the president he told PTIThe park sits in close proximity to the 17th century Jama Masjid and faces Red Fort a UNESCO World Heritage site on the other sideWe wanted visitors to feel the park was part of both the sites and therefore we chose heritage elements after careful research so that new structures would complement the existing heritage fabric of the region he added The part which is to be developed under the second phase is now slowly being barricaded and civic officials said work has begun to reclaim the neighbouring plot fully for the park projectA senior NDMC official said the park has rich stocks of flowers and shrubberies including petunia dog flowers marigold carnation poinsettia ornamental cabbage croton and furcariaOnce we open it to public there will be a nominal ticket fee he saidVisitors will also get to enjoy delicious cuisine of Chandni Chowk and handicrafts of Old Delhi at the park officials saidThe park located opposite the Parade Ground parking facility was originally named Heritage Park The name of Charti Lal Goel former deputy mayor of the erstwhile unified Municipal Corporation of Delhi and first Speaker of the Delhi Legislative Assembly was later prefixed to it officials said A white marble bust of Charti Lal Goel father of Vijay Goel has also been installed near the ornately-carved baradariAn amount of Rs 1768 crore was required towards the completion of the project which has been planned in two phases officials said PTI KND RHL

Thane Sep 29 PTI Police have arrested three people here in Maharashtra for allegedly betting on matches of the ongoing Indian Premier League IPL an official said Following a tip-off a police team raided a premises at a housing complex in Dombivli township on Monday night and caught the three accused while they were betting on a match Deputy Commissioner of Police Zone- III Kalyan Sachin Babasaheb Gunjal told reporters on Tuesday The police seized Rs 765 lakh cash a laptop and 23 mobile handsets including 17 without a SIM card from their possession he said The accused were identified as Ritesh Kuvarprakash Srivastav 44 Kunal Babanrao Dapodkar 33 and Nikhil Fulchand Courasia 32 the police said A case was registered against them under relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code and the Bombay Prevention of Gambling Act the official said PTI COR GK GK