New Parliament building | Photo credit: ANI
Key points
- This will be built on an area of 64,500 square meters, 17,000 more than the oldest building, at a cost of Rs 971 crore
- Tata Projects Ltd received the contract for the project.
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will attend the groundbreaking ceremony for the new Parliament building on December 10, Lok Sabha Chairman Om Birla confirmed on Saturday. He also announced that the new building will go into operation on August 15, 2021.
In making the announcement, Om Birla said it was decided that the groundbreaking ceremony for the new Parliament building will take place on December 10 at 1pm. The ceremony will begin with ‘bhumi pujan’ by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he added.
The president of the Lok Sabha also announced that on the 75th anniversary of India’s independence, we will begin the session of both Houses in the new Parliament building. The 75th Independence Day would be August 15, 2021.
Speaking of the building’s features, Birla said: “There will be approximately 888 seats for Lok Sabha members and more than 326 seats for Rajya Sabha members in the new building. The Lok Sabha hall will be able to accommodate 1224 members simultaneously.”
The Spokesperson stated that the new building will be a “temple of Aatmanirbhar Bharat” reflecting the diversity of the nation.
“It will be 17,000 square meters larger than the old Parliament building. It will be built on an area of 64,500 square meters at a cost of Rs 971 crore,” he added.
The new Parliament building will be earthquake resistant and around 2,000 people will directly participate in the construction, while 9,000 people will contribute indirectly.
A new office complex for all the deputies of both houses will be built in the current Shram Shakti Bhawan.
Om Birla also confirmed that the mega project has been awarded to Tata Projects Ltd. The design of the new structure has been prepared by HCP Design, Planning and Management Pvt Ltd.
The foundation stone of the present House of Parliament was laid on February 12, 1921 and the construction took six years and cost Rs 83 lakh at the time. The opening ceremony was performed on January 18, 1927 by the then Governor General of India, Lord Irwin.
