The Bridge to Nowhere Came From Nowhere

Yesterday Sevaka Sharanji and Paramadvaiti Maharaj took a delegation from the Braj Vrindavan Heritage Foundation to the Mathura Vrindavan Development Authority (MVDA) with the object of finding (1) the master plan for Vrindavan development and (2) the plans for the “half moon bridge.”

The first surprise was that there is no master plan. The Braj Foundation’s master plan, mentioned earlier here in this group's discussions, is apparently about tourism only and does not address infrastructure issues.

Vineet Narain, the person behind The Braj Foundation, who is working closely with Ramesh Baba in Barsana, has been accused by some people of approving or recommending the bridge. This is categorically untrue.

The second surprise was that the MVDA had nothing to do with the bridge and that it is entirely under the Public Works Department.

After getting the necessary maps and documents available at the MVDA, the BVHA delegation moved on to the PWD, where they were first surprised to encounter a crowd of anxious people from Vrindavan. The BVHA representatives learned that the PWD has sent bulldozers to the Parikrama Marg near Madan Mohan and started bulldozing the illegal constructions there, as per the Allahabad High Court decision.

I don’t know that there was any requirement for immediate leveling of these buildings, and without a subsequent plan it seems a little drastic, but at least it is interesting to see that there is some rapid reaction and action.

The PWD gave all the maps requested by the BVHA, though they were a little suspicious at first. However, the big surprise was that the bridge plans were… non-existent for all intents and purposes. The plan provided by Jai Prakash Associates Limited, the contractor for the bridge, was nothing more than an inked-in line over a map of the Yamuna at Keshi Ghat.

Before turning it over, however, the clerk at the PWD whited out the official signatures that gave approval to the project.

The long and short of all this is that the bridge was approved

(1) Without any engineering plans or blueprints
(2) Without environmental impact assessments
(3) Without any municipal hearings, etc.

If the PWD and MVDA did indeed release all the relevant documents to the BVHA delegation, then what we suspected has been confirmed: the project was rammed through without any planning or discussion whatsoever.

Government money was made available and everyone was rushing to think of ways to get that money into circulation as fast as possible without any other consideration.

The plans do, however, show that the intention is there to build a 9.5 meter road, i.e., a four-lane boulevard, on the Parikrama Marg, with a two-meter sand track for pilgrims on foot. Whether that is the best option is worth discussion. I personally would not be in favor of it, as it would split the ghats off from the scenic side of the Yamuna floodplane and in other ways disrupt the organic connection of the Yamuna to the town.

Let's push for the Parikrama Marg to be a Green Belt : harit patti.

Nevertheless, the news is very good for our side. It will be very hard for the government and JP Associates to make the case that they thought this project out thoroughly or consulted with the community, etc. This will make their task on Feb. 23, at the second hearing, very difficult.

What that does, though, is set the scene for the UNESCO meetings, which have now been rescheduled for April 23.