New Delhi, Mar 17 (IANS): Urban Development Minister Hardeep Singh Puri informed the Rajya Sabha that for the central vista project no iconic and historical buildings will be demolished and in the first phase of the project new parliament will be ready by 2022.

The Minister said that there is still no proposal on the usage of the old parliament building except suggestions from various quarters.

He also said after the project was ready it would accommodate around 50,000 employees and would have an underground shuttle system for accessibility.

After objections were raised by Congress, the Minister slammed the opposition party and said substandard buildings were made like Shastri Bhawan, Nirman Bhawan and others.

He said first the building to house staff will be ready then the old building like hutments will be demolished.

According to the statement issued in February by the ministry the work has started on the redevelopment of the Central Vista Avenue, the area surrounding Rajpath.

The Central Vista Avenue starting from North and South Block to India Gate, that includes the Rajpath, its adjoining lawns and canals, rows of trees, Vijay Chowk and the India Gate plaza is a three-km long stretch.

According to the statement, some modifications were carried out in the Central Vista Avenue after Independence, the landscape was altered, new rows of trees were added in the 1980s, a new road Rafi Ahmad Kidwai Marg was constructed to improve north-south connectivity.

The Government approved the proposal for redevelopment of Central Vista Avenue at an estimated cost of Rs 608 crore on November 10 last year.

The requisite permissions from the Delhi Urban Arts Commission, Heritage Conservation Committee, Central Vista Committee, and other local bodies have been obtained.

The development work in Phase-I includes the refurbishing of the landscaping and lawns by increasing the green cover from 3,50,000 square metres to about 3,90,000 square metres.