Kochi : Union Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh Puri on Friday remained non-committal about the precise date of the completion of the new Parliament complex in the Capital but sought to emphasise that work related to it was proceeding at a “very fast pace”.
Over 4,000 individuals were working round the clock to complete the project, the targetted date of completion of which, the government had in August told the Lok Sabha, was November, he said. “I go there every week, work is going on at a very fast pace; we have over 4,000 people working round the clock on it. When it will be completed is for the government to announce but what I can tell you is that it is proceeding very well,” he elaborated.
Mr. Puri offered this reassurance on the sidelines of the 15th Urban Mobility India (UMI) Conference & Expo, which he inaugurated with Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.
Sources aware of developments related to the project said the new building was likely to be officially handed over to the Lok Sabha Secretariat by December 31.
While construction was on in full swing, issues related to the procurement of fixtures — mainly voting machines for Members of Parliament to cast votes on various Bills following deliberation — that were to be procured from Europe had been held up, sources said.
Essential fixtures such as these, sources added, could now be replaced by domestic alternatives and the new building, which was 70% complete in August, was “nearing completion every day”.
