Prayagraj to get its own Marine Drive on banks of Ganga

PRAYAGRAJ: Pilgrims and tourists coming to Sangam city to attend the religious extravaganza of Maha Kumbh in 2025 would be able to enjoy leisure walk on both sides of Ganga as the government is mulling to develop 'Ganga Drive' on the lines of Mumbai's famous Marine Drive.
The two sides of the river-- the one towards the city side and the second towards Jhunsi side-- would be developed as 'Ganga drive'.
The 4 Km stretch of road from Old GT (towards Jhunsi side) to Chatthnag will be constructed at a cost of Rs 90 crore. Likewise, the 5 km stretch of road from Nagavasuki temple to Qila Ghat would be developed at a cost of Rs 110 crore. Both the roads will be 15m wide.
Kumbh Mela Adhikari Vijay Kiran Anand visited the site to review the land and alignment of both the roads.
"These two roads will serve as the lifeline for handling the huge turnout of tourists for Maha Kumbh. Besides, Ganga drive would also help checking encroachments," said Anand while talking to TOI.
These two roads would be non-bituminous and made by using concrete and cement as it gets inundated by floods every year.
The official explained that there would be no embankments to check the flood, but the quality of roads would be such that they will sustain the wrath of the floods.
"There would be kiosks and other facilities on the two roads so that commuters can enjoy their stroll on this stretch of road," he said.
Also, the authorities have also approved the construction of multi-level parking at Swaroop Rani Nehru (SRN) Hospital at an outlay of Rs 6 crore.
The Prayagraj Development Authority (PDA) will get the work done for multi-level parking.
Presently, the hospital entrance and the campus are struggling with lack of parking space. The main gate of the hospital will also be made more attractive with the budget of Smart City Project.
Besides, several roads coming under the Naini and Jhunsi area of the city would be converted as smart roads. The Nurullah road, starting from the city side of Prayagraj Junction, will be widened in view of Maha Kumbh. The detailed project report (DPR) of 30 approach roads that would be developed by the PDA was also reviewed by Anand. The span of road from Phaphamau to Sahson crossing will also be widened. In Naini, the road will be widened from Mama Bhanja Talab Bazar to Chaklal Mohammad. Likewise, Arail Modh crossing and the stretch of road from Lokpur to Arail will also be widened.