The inclusion of Delhi’s tableau showcasing the ongoing redevelopment of Chandni Chowk during Republic Day celebrations here on Tuesday has resurrected efforts to restore more of Shahjahanabad’s heritage.
Marking Delhi’s return to festivities on Rajpath via a float proposed by it after three years, the tableau, showcasing 1.3 km of redevelopment work between the Red Fort and the Fatehpuri Mosque, will be the only other “live” tableau apart from the Ram Temple-themed Uttar Pradesh float.
With mini contingents of four cyclists each riding along on either side to promote it as a means of commuting will mark possibly the first time that bicycles will run on Rajpath as part of a State float.
According to government sources, apart from taking up work related to façade restoration on the stretch, which has been featured in the tableau, the Public Works Department has also been directed to redesign the Netaji Subhash Marg from Delhi Gate to Kashmere Gate as a Heritage Road.
Similar redevelopment, according to sources, in the vicinity of Jama Masjid, S.P. Mukherjee Marg to the Old Delhi Railway Station Road, other adjoining neighbourhood streets but stretches related to the city’s heritage in one way or another across Delhi is also expected to take shape soon.
Meanwhile, sources said, work on a proposal for a draft legislative Bill to recognise the Shahjahanabad Redevelopment Corporation as a Special Area Local Planning and Development Authority for the Walled City is under way.
As reported by The Hindu on December 31, 2020, the city’s proposed tableau for Republic Day celebrations this year is based on the Chandni Chowk Redevelopment Project – undertaken at a cost of ₹90 crore and part of a larger redevelopment plan for the Walled City of Shahjahanabad which is on the brink of being inaugurated – showcasing a Delhi government accomplishment after three years.
Though a Delhi tableau was also part of the celebrations in 2019 – depicting Mahatma Gandhi’s 720-day stay in the city between 1915 and 1948 – it was part of a contingent of 22 others depicting different facets of the Father of the Nation, as per a ‘Gandhi connect’ theme to commemorate his 150th birth anniversary pre-decided by the Ministry of Defence
In 2017, the Delhi tableau illustrated a ‘Model Government School’ on the State government’s initiatives in the education sector and the betterment of the conditions of schools administered by it.
Before 2017, the Delhi tableau was a no-show for three consecutive years. Prior to this, a float seeking to showcase the diverse culture of those constituting its population and the traditional practices native to them, including fine art, was part of Republic Day celebrations in the year 2013.
