Delhi's New Secretariat: Twin Towers to Rise at ITO, Replacing Unsafe Building

The Delhi government has finalised the ITO area as the location for its new Secretariat complex, ending a year-long search. Officials said the new building, inspired by iconic twin towers in Malaysia and Singapore, will have 30 to 35 floors and feature green technologies such as rainwater harvesting and solar power systems.

The current Delhi Secretariat, known as the 'Players Building', was built for the 1982 Asian Games and was found to be seismically unsafe in a 2023 study by the Public Works Department (PWD). Last August, Chief Minister Rekha Gupta announced the need for a new integrated secretariat, stating that officials should not have to work in 'miserable conditions'.

On Friday, PWD Minister Parvesh Sahib Singh said preliminary work has started, and a global tender will be floated within a month to appoint an architect and a company for a detailed project report. The proposal will then need approval from the Finance Department's Expenditure Finance Committee and the Cabinet.

The project involves demolishing the PWD headquarters, the GST building, and Vikas Bhawan on Vikas Marg to house all government departments, including offices of the Chief Minister, ministers, and staff. Singh said the ITO location was chosen for its central accessibility, and the existing buildings are old and need redevelopment.

Earlier, the government had shortlisted four locations: Rajghat Power Plant, Khyber Pass, ITO MSO building, and Indraprastha Estate. The plan includes a twin tower at Vikas Marg connected to Vikas Bhawan on the opposite side via a long corridor.

This project was first proposed in 2021 under the previous AAP government but remained on paper. The new complex will feature improved parking, seminar rooms, conference rooms, and auditoriums.