The around 1500-meter stretch between the Director General of Police’s (DGP) residence and Golf Club along Gomti River in Lucknow is all set to get a fresh lease of life with the UP government set to beautify the area on the lines of the Gomti River Front Project.
Initially, a budget of around Rs 25 crore has been approved by the government to kick-start the makeover project. “We have sought permission in order to initiate the work. Once permission is granted, we will float the tenders, which is the normal procedure for any project work. We are hopeful that the development work will start in the current financial year,” said Indramani Tripathi, vice-chairman of Lucknow Development Authority (LDA).
Officials with LDA, while claiming that the stretch would be the most beautiful in modern times, said it would be made pollution-free by ensuring that the Haider Canal, which also flows parallel to the stretch, is spruced up. “We are looking forward to the techniques and agencies that can reduce the pollution and stench emanating from the Haider Canal,” a senior LDA official said.
Though the project is yet to hit the ground, the LDA horticulture department has already started making arrangements to give a ‘green effect’ to the visitors. “Adding a green cover is a natural process, we can’t get it done in a time-bound manner. That’s why we initiate the work first and by the time the project completes, there is ample greenery around. We have planned sowing of jasmine, aromatic plants, climbers and creepers along the stretch,” an official said.
As per the blueprint, the entire 1500-km-long project will have a four-meter-wide jogging track apart from a two-meter-wide walking track. The stretch will be illuminated and decked up with ultramodern benches, sitting decks, and swings. It will also have an amphitheatre with a total capacity of around 300 visitors.
Officials also said the stretch would be given a ‘Lakhnawi touch’ and Nawabi-era architecture would be incorporated into the project. “This stretch will be designed in such a way that it reminds people of the famous ‘Thandi Sadak’ of Nawabi era. According to historians, the ‘Thandi Sadak’ offers the best view of Chhatar Manzil — a Nawabi-era palace that served as the residence of the nawabs and their wives. The road runs along the Gomti and separates the palace from the river. It used to be the most popular road during the Nawabi era,” he added.
Officials are yet to decide the name of the stretch.
The Gomti River Front Project, said to be former Samajwadi Party government’s flagship project, came up during the regime of Akhilesh Yadav. The land was owned by the irrigation department but work had to be stopped after BJP came to power and ordered a CBI probe into allegations of corruption by some department officials during the construction of the river front.
Though the probe was only for the construction work, the LDA, on precautionary basis, stopped the entire work, including the beautification of the area. In an LDA meeting in 2023, the project gained momentum after LDA decided to obtain a No Objection Certificate from the irrigation department and resumed work.
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