Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the country's new Parliament building today. Last Thursday, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla met the Prime Minister and invited him to inaugurate the new Parliament building. According to the Lok Sabha Secretariat, the construction of the new Parliament building has now been completed. It also replaced the old parliament building, which now had many defects.
What is the difference between the new and old Parliament Houses?
Seating Arrangement:
The old building had seating arrangements for 550 and 250 members of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha respectively. In comparison, the new building will have the capacity to accommodate 888 Lok Sabha and 384 Rajya Sabha MPs. The current building was never designed to accommodate a bicameral legislature. The number of Lok Sabha seats has never changed from 545 based on the 1971 census delimitation. However, it is predicted to increase significantly after 2026.
Area:
The new Parliament building will be spread over an area of about 64,500 square meters. Talking about the old building, it is a circular building with a diameter of 170.69 meters and a circumference of 536.33 meters.
Central Hall:
The new building does not have a central Hall like the present i.e. the old parliament building. The central hall in the old building had a seating capacity of only 440 persons. The problem of limited seats arose when there were joint sessions. Now the Lok Sabha Chamber will be used for joint session.
Modern Technology:
According to Central Vista's website, fire safety was a major concern in the old building, as it was not designed to current fire safety standards. Some new electrical cables have been added considering the potential fire hazard. Furthermore, the installation of services like water supply lines, sewer lines, air-conditioning, fire fighting, CCTV, audio-video system etc. started spoiling the beauty of the building and causing leakages. Keeping all these things in mind, the new Parliament House has been designed and state-of-the-art technology has been added. The new building also has state-of-the-art technology including biometrics, digital language interpretation or translation systems and microphones to facilitate voting. Virtual sound simulation has been fitted to the interior of the hall to limit echo.
Price:
The cost of preparing the new parliament building is Rs 971 crore. 83 lakh rupees were spent on the construction of the old Parliament House.
Construction Time:
On 10 December 2020, the foundation stone of the new Parliament building was laid by Prime Minister Modi. The newly constructed Parliament Building has been completed with quality in three years and five months. While the old Parliament building took six years (1921-1927) to build.
Opening:
The new Parliament building was inaugurated on 28 May 2023 by Prime Minister Modi. Old Parliament House, an architectural splendor and a historical landmark that guided India's destiny for almost a century and whose glorious legacy will now be recorded in the pages of history. It was inaugurated on 18 January 1927 by the then Viceroy Lord Irvine.
Parking Capacity:
Old Parliament House has a parking capacity of 212 vehicles. And the new Parliament building has parking space for 900 vehicles.
Constitution Hall:
The Constitution Hall did not exist in the old Parliament House. It is present in the New Parliament Building, which is its main attraction. On top of the Constitution Hall is an Ashoka Pillar, an important symbol of Indian heritage. A copy of the constitution will be preserved in this hall. To add to its grandeur, large photographs of great personalities like Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Subhash Chandra Bose and former Prime Ministers of India will grace the halls of the new Parliament House.
