Janpath to get new look

By Sandeep Joshi

NEW DELHI, NOV. 12.

These days, people passing through one of the Capital's favoured tourist destinations, Janpath, might be perplexed over different shades of paints that have been applied on the railings of the road divider. Yes, there is an experiment going on to find out which colour best suits Janpath's ambience.

If the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) Chairman, Mr. Subhash Sharma, is to be believed, these iron railings will be given a fresh coat of paint with shade different from green before being replaced by an attractive cast iron railings that are ``aesthetically'' more correct.

From the day Mr. Sharma took over as NDMC chief in October, he has been pushing forward the idea of giving the pride of Delhi, Janpath, an altogether new and more elegant look. ``The iron grills in middle of Janpath do not jell with the ambience and character of the place. It is jarring and unattractive negating the beautiful vista,'' he says.

``Janpath has many old and magnificent buildings like the Eastern and Western Courts, that are architecturally remarkable. So to meet such royal surroundings, we need something extraordinary to make us feel proud,'' reiterates Mr. Sharma.

So, keeping these factors in mind, Mr. Sharma decided to do away with the present railings and, instead, go for a more regal and aesthetically designed cast iron grills that are found at different landmarks including Kashmere Gate, Hyderabad House and on Prithviraj Road.

As the NDMC authorities and designers are still working out that ``perfect'' design of the new railings which will be ready in another few months, it has been decided to give a fresh coat of paint. ``A few shades have been applied on the railings and people's opinions are being sought in choosing the best colour which will be given to it before new railings come up,'' adds Mr. Sharma.

However, the fact is that the present railings were put a couple of years back when the need was felt for a permanent divider on the road for smooth flow of vehicles. An amount of Rs. 6 lakhs was spent on installing the railings.

It is expected that the new railings will cost two to three times more (Rs. 15-18 lakhs). However, Mr. Sharma feels that there would be no loss in replacing the railings as the present ones will be utilised at some other place.

Other measures like facelift to pavements, proper lighting and more greenery would be added to Janpath's character to make the surroundings and atmosphere really remarkable, says Mr. Sharma. If people liked it, a few other roads in Lutyens Delhi would have same railings, the first would be Africa Avenue.

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