Let Lutyens be, angry Gill tells Jethmalani

NEW DELHI, May 9: IF you think Chief Election Commissioner CEC M.S. Gill is the busiest man in the country at the moment, you could wel...

NEW DELHI, May 9: IF you think Chief Election Commissioner CEC M.S. Gill is the busiest man in the country at the moment, you could well be right. If you think organising the elections is all the CEC is concerned with, think again. In a strongly worded letter he dashed off to Urban Development Minister Ram Jethmalani, Gill has deplored the 8220;vandalisation8221; of his well-appointed neighbourhood.

8220;As a resident of 6, Akbar Road, I am appalled at the vandalisation of one of the roundabouts by four unnecessary, unworkable and vulgar fountains being put in the four corners, with the whole thing faced with white round stones,8221; reads the letter. An incensed Gill further writes, 8220;The city needs water and electricity, both perhaps unavailable. It does not need poor quality, vulgar fountains made by petty contractors, for profit. I think the elegance of the Lutyens layout should not be meddled with, unthinkingly.8221;

The object of Gill8217;s wrath 8212; the four fountains being laid out at the four corners of the roundabout connecting Akbar Road with Krishna Menon Marg, Tees January Marg and Tughlaq Road for the last month-and-a-half 8212; are expected to be completed within another week or so, according to the NDMC workers employed at the site.

While Urban Development Minister could not be contacted as he was out of the country, NDMC Chairman B.P. Misra has promised to look into the matter. Misra, however, adds, 8220;Different designs for fountains have been approved for different sites and I can8217;t recall offhand which one has invited Dr Gill8217;s ire, but fountains are generally part of our beautification process for the New Delhi area. And surely there can be a difference of opinion on the design aspect. If two persons find it vulgar, there could be four others who might find it beautiful.8221;

In fact, as Professor Asesh Kumar Maitra, Director, School of Planning and Architecture, says: 8220;Perhaps Edwin Lutyens didn8217;t include fountains in his original design, but I don8217;t think we have to conserve his design so much that we cannot let the city grow and live.8221; Delhi, he reminds, was an arid desert in the 1950s, and adds, 8220;By that token, we should cut all trees because Lutyens didn8217;t envisage so many trees. Fountains, in any case, are pieces of sculpture that beautify the city8217;s landscape, if they work. People go to Rome, for instance, to see its beautiful fountains.8221;

Gill, however, says, 8220;These pipe fountains not only look ugly but also stop working after a while. And fountains are just one example of the malaise. They have messed up the whole area by digging it up and destroying the green cover. Then there are the encroachments into the public land all around.8221;

While there is little to dispute the assertion, which becomes evident once you take a walk through the huge bungalow zone serving the powers that be, a senior NDMC official quips, on the condition of anonymity, 8220;Maybe some of the fountains don8217;t look beautiful, but that8217;s no reason to stop constructing them. It8217;s like saying we shouldn8217;t have elections just because bogus voting takes place in some constituencies.8221;

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Fountains are not the only sore point as Gill reminds Jethmalani in the letter: 8220;I even saw this happen outside your gate at Akbar Road gate, since you are my neighbour. Suddenly brick terrace flower beds were built, projecting from the Lutyens wall. Of course, nobody ever put any flowers; your Akbar Road side door is perpetually locked, and these are used only for piling rubbish.8221;