Chandigarh, April 23 -- Even asChandigarh administration has awarded tender for construction of Tribune Flyover, the petitioners in high court on Wednesday demanded that tree cutting for the same be stayed pending proceedings before the court. The project was conceived in 2016 to decongest Tribune Chowk as most of the traffic coming to the tricity from Delhi passes through it. The proposed 1.6-km flyover will start after the Government Medical College and Hospital, Sector 32 roundabout and land ahead of the railway overbridge on Dakshin Marg. The demand was raised in a clutch of petitions raising environmental concerns, if flyover is permitted and terming the UT's move against the city's heritage character; and further challenging cutting of the trees for the project. Appearing for the petitioners, Jagwant Singh Bath and others, lawyer Tanu Bedi had told the court that Chandigarh Master Plan (CMP) 2031, notified under the Capital of Punjab Act, 1952 and the Punjab New Capital (Periphery) Control Act, 1952, is a statutory document and it does not recommend the construction of flyovers within the city and mandates that alternative traffic management measures be explored. She also claimed that the proposal was cleared by a subcommittee of the Chandigarh Heritage Conservation Committee (CHCC) that lacked the authority to approve the project. Bedi also pointed to contradictory views between different departments between 2018-20, when the project was conceptualised and said that the urban planning department, opposed the project. She also claimed that the Indian Roads Congress guidelines, which require authorities to exhaust all other traffic management options before proposing a flyover, had not been followed. In its submissions, UT had told the court that a division bench of the high court has already vacated the stay on the project on April 30, 2024, after considering all aspects, including environmental concerns. UT's senior standing counsel, Amit Jhanji submitted that the order has attained finality as a petition filed in Supreme Court on the issue has been withdrawn by the petitioners in September 2024. He further told the court that Chandigarh, originally planned for a population of about 5 lakh, now caters to tricity population. The commuters entering from Zirakpur and Delhi face traffic congestion lasting up to 1.5 hours, making the flyover a necessary intervention. He also informed that 2,799 saplings had already been planted as compensatory afforestation at a 5:1 ratio for trees proposed to be felled. The administration would obtain all required environmental clearances and conduct impact assessments before commencing construction, he said adding that due to litigation since 2019, the project has been stalled, leading to cost escalation and delay in the city's development. The case now would be taken up on Friday for further arguments....