Development work at Jama Masjid to begin soon,HC told

The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) assured the Delhi High Court on Monday that it will soon begin the development work at Jama Masjid.

“We have received approval from the Delhi Urban Arts Commission (DUAC),Archaeology Survey of India (ASI) and the Delhi Police. We have appointed a consultant to monitor the work,which will soon begin,” the MCD submitted before a Division Bench led by Justice Mukul Mudgal. The Bench has posted the case for further hearing on September 14.

The civic agency turned lucky only the fourth time — with three earlier development blueprints trashed by the DUAC. The current plan is a sanitised one of the original version,which boasted of an underground parking lot and a heritage mall.

On October 6,2006,the court had approved the building plans and estimated the cost for the work. The MCD has now launched a dedicated website on the re-development plan of the mosque to encourage transparency and public involvement.