This is an archive article published on December 26, 2022
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2 elephant statues will welcome G20 delegates next year
The department has installed the lion statues at two locations and more will come up at six traffic signals and islands.
According to officials, the redevelopment and beautification work on the stretch is already on. (Express file photo by Praveen Khanna, representational)
After the ‘Make in India’ lion statues, the Public Works Department (PWD) is planning to install two 15-foot-tall statues of elephants at the entrance of the airport road as part of the infrastructure makeover for the G-20 summit next September.
“We are planning to install two statues, each 15 feet tall, at the airport road — one at the tunnel between the airport and Mehram Nagar and the other on a traffic island on the same stretch. These will be made of pink sandstone. It will be a welcoming sign for foreign dignitaries who will be visiting the country for the summit,” said a senior PWD official.
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Officials said tenders have been floated for their installation. The estimated cost of these statues is approximately Rs 60 lakh. “Once tender process is completed and a contractor is hired, statues will be made and installed in three months,” said the official.
The department has installed the lion statues at two locations and more will come up at six traffic signals and islands.
The PWD is also planning to revamp some roads that were redeveloped during the 2010 Commonwealth Games.
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“A four-lane flyway connecting Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium and games village in East Delhi was constructed and several roads connecting stadiums such as JLN, Indira Gandhi Stadium, and R K Khanna stadium, were revamped… Some of these roads, such as DDU Marg, Vikas Marg, Rajghat and ITO, were redeveloped and are being maintained… But the problem is they were not redeveloped in a detailed manner,” said a senior PWD official.
“Also, some stretches are key points connecting Pragati Maidan, where the summit will take place, and others are situated in New and South Delhi. Under the PWD streetscaping project, these roads will be redeveloped uniformly. There will be footpaths, synthetic carpeted roads, greenery, open areas with street furniture and a separate parking area,” said the official.
The four-lane Barapullah road (phase-1), Pusa Road, Shankar Road, Ring Road, Mathura Road, and roads around the Pragati Maidan integrated corridor are also being developed.
According to officials, the redevelopment and beautification work on the stretch is already on. (Express file photo by Praveen Khanna, representational) 
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