New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lay the foundation stone of the new Parliament building and perform Bhumi Pujan in New Delhi on December 10 at 1.00 pm, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla said. Birla had visited the Prime Minister on Friday and invited him to the ceremony.

Speaker Om Birla said that the construction of the new Parliament building is expected to be completed in October 2022. The new Parliament building will be built on the basis of requirements for next 100 years. This will be built at an expense of Rs 971 crores. Tata Projects Ltd has been given the contract for the project. The design has been prepared by Gujarat based architect Bimal Patel led HCP Design, Planning and Management Pvt Ltd.

Birla said there would be around 888 seats for the Lok Sabha members and over 384 seats for Rajya Sabha members in the new building. The new building will have the capacity to accommodate 1272 members simultaneously.

The new parliament building will not have central hall. The chamber of Lok Sabha will serve the purpose of central hall also when required.

Handicraft and artifact items from various states will be showcased in the new parliament building, Speaker said adding that each parliament member will have a 40 square meter personal office by year 2024 in a building to be built at Shram Shakti Bhavan with underground connectivity to parliament campus. A new parliament building will have under ground, ground floor, first floor, second floor and terrace. The new building will have modern facilities. It will have good security features also.

He said, the new building will not majorly effect the visibility of existing parliament building. All statues in parliament campus will be relocated with respect. The existing parliament building will continue to be used even after construction of a new building. Both buildings will complement each other. While constructing a new earthquake-proof parliament building, the existing building will not be damaged or altered.

He said outer look of the new building will be similar to existing parliament building. Similarly, the height of existing and new parliament buildings will be same. There will be more committee rooms and also the offices of various political parties in new building.

Birla described that the new Parliament building as the temple of Atmanirbhar Bharat that will be reflect the diversity of the nation. He said Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha will function in a new building of parliament when India will mark 75th year of independence. Thousands of laborers will work for new building directly and indirectly.

The demand to build new parliament building was going on since long. There were debates within the house several times on this subject. The Prime Minister considered the demand of both houses, Birla said.

The new Parliament building will span over an area of around 64,500-metre square which is 17,000 square meter bigger than existing parliament building. It will come up on plot number 118 of Parliament House Estate that currently houses a reception, boundary walls and other temporary structures. The new building will have separate offices for all Members of Parliament and will have the latest digital interfaces as a step in the direction of creating ‘paperless offices’. In addition to a grand Constitution Hall in the building to exhibit India’s democratic heritage, the new building will have a lounge for MPs, a library, multiple committee rooms, dining areas and parking space. DeshGujarat