India votes 2024: A new New Delhi for a new India?
The Central Vista, a 3km avenue that runs from the iconic India Gate to the president’s official residence and designed by British architect Edwin Lutyens in the colonial era, is in the middle of a vast and controversial redevelopment. For some, the project, spearheaded by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is a symbol of a new modern and confident India. But others accuse Modi and his right-wing Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of trying to remake the capital in their image, at the expense of its history and heritage.
The Central Vista, a 3km avenue that runs from the iconic India Gate to the president’s official residence and designed by British architect Edwin Lutyens in the colonial era, is in the middle of a vast and controversial redevelopment. For some, the project, spearheaded by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is a symbol of a new modern and confident India. But others accuse Modi and his right-wing Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of trying to remake the capital in their image, at the expense of its history and heritage.
