A bungalow in Lutyens’ Delhi

New Delhi, Dec. 16: Edwin Landseer Lutyens died nearly 68 years ago but some of his creations are set to multiply. At least four times.

The Central Public Works Department is planning to demolish the original structure of the bungalows in Lutyens’ Delhi, the home of India’s high and mighty, and replace them with new constructions along the same “footprint”.

“Delhi is growing, we have to convince the CPWD to use the floor area ratio more judiciously. The Lutyens’ Bungalow Zone (LBZ) structures have outlived their lives, we are toying with the idea of demolishing them and replacing them with brand-new structure on the same footprint,” urban development secretary Sudhir Krishna said.

The plan is to construct at least four bungalows in the space of one.

The name Lutyens’ Delhi will, of course, live on in memory of the British architect who played an instrumental role in designing the national capital between 1912 and 1930.

Most of the 1,200 bungalows in the zone came up between 1912 and 1930 in an area spread over 2,800 hectares in the heart of the city.

“All of them are mud-and-water structures. They tend to get damp during the rains. And most of them are in tatters, they are standing only because of the excellent maintenance work being done by us,” a senior CPWD engineer said.

The department wants to construct the new bungalows with cement and bricks.

Because of the precarious condition of some of the bungalows, the CPWD has already demolished at least nine and reconstructed them.

Earlier this month, Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit had asked the department to submit details about each bungalow, such as when they were constructed and names of all the occupants.

The bungalows are of different types, with the plinth area varying between 3,000sqft and 8,000sqft. Ministers are entitled to a bungalow with a plinth area of 4,498sqft.

As the rebuild plan is to maintain the “same footprint”, the proposal includes trimming the sprawling gardens that ministers and MPs enjoy, though the plinth area of the bungalows will be maintained.

From hosting official lunches to weddings, the gardens are now used for various purposes. During election time, the gardens have also doubled as makeshift election offices.

The plan is to convert some of the garden space to accommodate the new bungalows. But the task ahead is not simple.

“The most important question is should we carry it out in one go or do it piecemeal. And where and how will we accommodate the ministers during the time of construction,” said a senior urban development ministry official.

As the answers are yet to be worked out, the proposal is still being spoken in whispers in the corridors of Nirman Bhavan.

The plan also needs the clearance of several bodies, including the Delhi Urban Arts Commission.

Under existing rules, any construction in Lutyens’ Bungalow Zone is prohibited. To construct even an addition room for security, permissions are required from a host of bodies.

Architect Sudhir Vohra said not all the bungalows in the LBZ date from the same period. “Many of them came up much later and are not aesthetically and architecture-wise so important. These can definitely make way for better structures. But there cannot be a broad-brush outlook for one and all.”