India gets new parliament building as Modi remakes capital's centre

NEW DELHI -- Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate a new parliament complex on Sunday, the centrepiece of a $2.4 billion project that aims to reconstruct British colonial-era buildings in the capital's centre and give it a distinct Indian identity. Labourers work at the under construction site of the new parliament building in New Delhi, India, May 23, 2023. It has said a new parliament building is badly needed as the existing structure "is highly stressed" for a number of reasons including capacity, infrastructure, technology and safety. The new building, Modi said when he launched its construction in December 2020 during the pandemic, "would become a witness to the creation of a self-reliant India", underlining another pet theme. An auto rickshaw drives pasts in front of the under construction site of the new parliament building in New Delhi, India, May 23, 2023.