The Lucknow Development Authority (LDA) is all set to select the consultant for its ambitious Gomti riverfront project on January 16. The LDA officials say that the technical bids which were opened on November 17 have been already evaluated and the financial bids would be opened on the final day of selection. They said that the most suitable consultant would be awarded the project on the same day after considering both technical and financial bids. In all, 12 consultants are in the fray, five of them are foreign firms.
The Gomti riverfront project involves utilisation of unused lands on both sides of the river, construction of public recreational facilities and beautification of the surroundings. This would be done along the 15-km stretch extending from Kudiya Ghat to Gomti Barrage near Samtamulak crossing. The LDA has already assigned the task of conducting hydrological study of the river to IIT Roorkee team around six months ago. The study would give a deeper understanding of the land type, kinds of structures which can be erected on it and also about the level on interventions permissible by the riverbank.
The study was to complete by November last year but due to some unforeseen circumstances, the report would come by February end, confirmed LDA officials. Once the consultant is appointed, he would prepare the feasibility study of the land and submit his Detailed Project Report (DPR) to the LDA within 2-3 months for approval. LDA vice-chairman Rajiv Agarwal said.
Agarwal also said that the LDA might consider riverjacketing (river dredging or narrowing of the river bed) depending on the hydrological study to avail more land for optimal utilisation. LDA had received bids from 12 consultants across the country. Reportedly, the authority has been encouraging a number of foreign firms to participate in the riverfront bidding process to promote better quality of work.
Inspired by some of the most successful riverfront projects in the country like the one in Ahmedabad on Sabarmati river, LDA has plans to set up theme-based parks, pathways, joggers’ park, cycle tracks, water sports, greeneries, promenades, kiosks and other recreational amenities on both sides of the riverbank. However this may also involve a number of hurdles like removing forceful and illegal encroachments on the river banks. The authority is all prepared to remove these encroachments from the target stretch of the riverbank.
Besides, some LDA officials have also claimed that the authority is planning to construct commercial spaces, residential units and shops on this stretch to make it a revenue-generating project. However, a senior official has confirmed that the design layout would entirely depend on the hydrological report of the river. He also said that the condition of the river is much better than other rivers in the country and hence construction of commercial spaces cannot be ruled out.
The official said, “The water level is satisfactory; even if it dips in summers it is not too low and gets restored by itself. We do not have to take water from the reservoirs to refill it. Also unlike other rivers, Gomti also does not have major slum encroachments on its banks; all these conditions have made our job much easier.”
He added that the river is comparatively cleaner and since not many encroachments exist on its bank, the authority does not have to worry about creating a rehabilitation policy as in the case of Sabarmati riverfront project. “All these conditions have made the project much easier to begin in time”, he said.
The twelve bidders who would participate on January 16 are -- Broadway Malyan, UK; Shah Technical Consultants, Mumbai; LKS India, Pune, Voyants Solutions; Gurgaon, Kling Consult GMBH, Dubai; DDF Consultants, New Delhi; Hiten Sethi and Associates, Navi Mumbai; Arcop Associates, New Delhi in consortium with WRT-USA, Architects Team 3 Pvt Ltd, Singapore; CEPT University, Ahmedabad in consortium with Civil Consultant-Lucknow; Pradeep Sachdeva Design Associates, New Delhi and Urban Aqua, Germany in consortium with ANB Consultant, Lucknow.
THE PROJECT
To come up over a 15-km stretch from Kudiya Ghat to Gomti Barrage. It involves utilisation of unused lands on both sides of the river, construction of public recreational facilities and beautification of the surroundings. It includes theme-based parks, pathways, joggers’ park, cycle tracks, water sports, greeneries, promenades, kiosks and other recreational amenities. Commercial spaces might be constructed if hydrological report permits
ON THE JOB
IIT Kanpur is doing hydrological study of the riverbed. Technical bids have been evaluated. Twelve consultants are in the fray for financial bid which would be opened on Jan 16. The consultant would be finalized after evaluating both technical and financial bids on the same day
THE CHALLENGES
Removing forceful and illegal encroachments on the river banks. The authority is all prepared to remove these encroachments from the target stretch of the riverbank. River-jacketing could be done to utilize maximum space on the river bed
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