Paschim Vihar


Paschim Vihar is an affluent residential area in Delhi, India falling under the Punjabi Bagh subzone of West Delhi. A typical Delhi suburb that developed significantly in the 1980s, it is packed with apartment complexes functioning as group housing societies, built both privately as well as by the Delhi Development Authority. The Outer Ring Road divides Paschim Vihar into two parts. The Eastside has the PIN code 110063 and is relatively older and well planned than the Westside which is located across Outer Ring Road, having the PIN code 110087.
Eastside is an upscale residential, commercial and retail centre.
Eastside of Paschim Vihar also has
one of the seventeen DDA sports complex in Delhi which has numerous sport's facilities for different sport's category. The ground is the same for both sports - football and cricket, a swimming pool, and a basketball court.
The east side comes under the Vidhan Sabha seat of Shakurbasti and the present MLA is Satyendra Kumar Jain and the Westside comes under Nangloi Jat and the MLA is Raghuvendra Shaukeen. The area is divided into four wards: Paschim Vihar North and Paschim Vihar South cover the east side as well as the Jwala Heri Market and Bhera Enclave, Mianwali Nagar and Peera Garhi that cover the west side as well as the Peeragarhi Village.
A large chunk of the population comprises Punjabis. However, the relocatement camps and nearby areas of, Mangolpuri, and Sultanpuri have considerable Muslim population. Similarly, Guru Harkishan Nagar on the west side has a significant Sikh population. Many affluent Bengali families also live equally on both the sides of Paschim Vihar.

History

Settlements here started around the late 1970s and 1980s, thus this is a relatively old and green area. The east side was 'mostly' developed by the DDA where blocks were A, B, and C-blocks were formed and plots were allotted along with flats in Group Housings. The west side is 'mostly' privately developed. Huge sects of land were allotted by the DDA to private societies on both sides. These societies then made roads and erected other essential amenities by themselves and allotted plots to members. Most of the kothis of the areas are in these colonies. Plot sizes here range from 164-500 square yards, with 200 being a common size. Post-2008, following a change in MCD rules, the concept of a builder floor here has really taken off, where these bungalows are being converted to the 4-floor building in which different floors accommodate different families as against other bungalows which are one-family dwellings. The land developed by DDA has no such bungalows or builder floors.
Paschim Vihar is developed on agriculture land of Jwala heri village and Khyala village most powerful area of gurjar.

Surroundings

There is a West Delhi Cricket Academy in Paschim Vihar which has produced cricketers like Virat Kohli. The Financial Mall also has its head office in Paschim Vihar. On the eastern side lies Punjabi Bagh, Madipur and Paschim Puri and on the northern side lies the Mangolpuri Industrial Area and Pitampura. On the western side lies Nangloi, Udyog Nagar, Mianwali Nagar and Surajmal Stadium, and on the southern side lies Keshopur, Janakpuri and Vikaspuri. Two parts of the area are also ruled by Gram Panchayats - Peera Garhi and Jwala Heri, where much of the latter has been converted for commercial usage into the Jwala Heri Market. Peera Garhi also has several workshops.
Nangloi Jat and Saiyyed Nangloi are the nearest areas which are adjacent to the western edge, and a little further are the village clusters of Kirari, Neher, Sultanpuri, and Nilothi. The area also accommodates 2 relocation camps which were built during the time of partition for refugees. These areas now house mainly poor and lower-middle-class people.
The Najafgarh Drain flows through the western edge at its southern part to a part away up to almost a kilometer away in the northern part.
Nearby residential areas of Paschim Vihar include Punjabi Bagh, Madipur, Paschim Puri, Paschim Vihar Extension, Punjabi Bagh Extension, Bhera Enclave, Sunder Vihar, Meera Bagh, Jwalapuri, Guru Harkishan Nagar, Tilak Nagar, Vikaspuri, Janakpuri, Keshopur, Peeragarhi, Nangloi, Udyog Nagar, Pitampura and Rohini. The postal code of Paschim Vihar on the eastern side of Outer Ring Road is 110063 and of that on the western side is 110087. The extreme western sides of Nangloi are having the pin code 110041.

Connectivity

Road and bus connectivity

The area has excellent road and rail connectivity. On its northern edge runs the Rohtak Road, and the Outer Ring Road divides Paschim Vihar into east and the west. Both these roads are well maintained and are 6-8 lanes wide around the area. In this area, the outer ring road is maintained by the MCD and has a flyover at Peera Garhi Chowk and an underpass and roundabout at Sunder Vihar Crossing. The Outer Ring Road also has several foot-bridges with escalators. Similarly, the Rohtak Road is maintained by the Public Works Department. Where the Outer Ring Road connects the area with much of the city, Rohtak Road connects it to the center of Delhi and the state border of Haryana. Both these roads have a very high frequency of buses. Most of the buses that ply on the Outer Ring Road are DTC low-floors; AC and Non-AC.
Peeragarhi is the major intersection between the Rohtak Road and Outer Ring Road. It is also accessible from the Peeragarhi Metro Station. Interstate buses to Bahadurgarh, Ghevra, Hisar, Jhajjar and Rohtak depart from here. Paschim Vihar's other bus stops like the Nangloi Bus Depot, Sultanpuri Bus Depot, Mangolpuri Bus Depot, and Keshopur Bus Depot, which are within a close reach. Most of the bus routes passing through the area run on either Rohtak Road or Outer Ring Road. Others run on both, these are mainly those running on Outer Ring Road but with terminals at Mangolpuri or Sultanpuri or those running on Rohtak Road have terminals at Nangloi or Mundka.
Route No. 567 runs from Nangloi and passes through A-6, Jwalaheri, and other blocks of the east side. Route No. 910 passes within this part via the Saiyyed Nangloi Road terminating at Saiyyed Nangloi and passing via Jwalaheri and other blocks of the east side. Over 75 bus routes ply through the area. Bus routes that ply through the area are:
On Outer Ring Road - 741, 761, 879, 882, 883, 947, 947A, 969, 972, Madhuban Chowk Circular Sewa, Outer Mudrika
On Rohtak Road - GL-91, 219, 231, 236, 236EXT, 254, 908, 914, 915, 915EXT, 918, 922-929, 929EXT, 929SLT, 931, 934, 935, 941, 942, 948, 949, 949A, 949EXT, 963, 966, 968, 976, 978, 980, 983, 991, 998, Najafgarh-Zakhira Circular Sewa
On both, other - 231, 910, 567, 568, 569, 569EXT, 761EXT, 808, 846, 849, 905, 907, 910, 937, 939, 969, 940, 943, 944, 947, 953, 954, 962, 966EXT
There are plenty of bus stops across the area. Avtar Enclave, New Multan Nagar, Super Bazaar, and Peera Garhi Chowk on Rohtak Road serve the eastern side, while Peeragarhi, Mianwali Nagar, Inder Enclave and Nangloi serve the western side. The Outer Ring Road also has Peera Garhi, Sunder Apartments, Sunder Vihar and Meera Bagh bus stands to serve the residents of both sides. On the East Side Road, No. 29-30 bus stop is used by B-block residents along with B1, B2, Jwala Heri, and the Sunder Vihar Water Tank. There is also an A-2 bus-stop additionally. The west side has Bhera Enclave, Bhera Enclave GH-14, Ram Mandir, GH-12, Meera Bagh Market, Nihal Vihar, Ambika Vihar, and Saiyyed Nangloi bus stops serving the residents of various colonies.

Metro connectivity

Delhi Metro's Green Line passes on the northern side of the area, which joins to the Red Line at Inderlok as well as the Blue Line at Kirti Nagar. Additionally, people living on the east side can travel to the Rajouri Garden Station which provides additional accessibility. Line 5 is the first in Delhi Metro to run on standard gauge. Four stations on the Green Line cater to the residents of the area. Paschim Vihar East and Paschim Vihar West cater to the east side of the Outer Ring Road, and Peera Garhi and Udyog Nagar to the west side.
Paschim Vihar will also benefit from Delhi Metro's Phase IV which will be completed in 2016 and 2021. The colony will fall on the line that will run along Outer Ring Road in the north and west Delhi. According to tentative plans, this metro rail line will run between Sanjay Gandhi Transport Nagar in North Delhi and Sagarpur near Janak Puri in West Delhi, passing through Madhuban Chowk.

Other modes of transport

In all parts, cycle rickshaws and auto-rickshaws can be found easily. Gramin Sewa Autos ply on both Outer Ring Road and Rohtak Road with three routes operating: one to Mangolpuri, one to Punjabi Bagh and the third to Madipur via Jwalaheri Market. Recently, motor-powered low-height 4-seater rickshaws have also come up, which can cover long distances which the cycle rickshaws cannot.

Educational institutions

, one of the prestigious colleges in New Delhi, is in this locality, adjacent to Paschim Vihar East Metro Station on Green Line.
Paschim Vihar has many Public and Government Senior Secondary Schools. A few from the long list include:
The area has a lot of greenery with trees planted on the sides of roads and several parks and grounds. The one-acre Paschim Vihar District Park is adjacent to the Peera Garhi DTC Depot. On the western side, in Sunder Vihar, there are two adjacent football grounds. In Guru Harkishan Nagar, there is another huge park with a jogging track of 2 km. On the south-west corner of the western side is the Nihal Vihar District Park, which is ten times larger than the Paschim Vihar District Park. All group housing apartments on the eastern side have a park and most also have a commonplace of worship. This contributes to plenty of parks, mosques, temples, gurudwaras and churches in the area.
Jwala Heri Village on the eastern side has been converted into a retail hub as well as Mafia hub. From its early roots as a village it is now a market with all sorts of retails shops, stores, and showrooms. Plenty of illegal constructions took place in the village with support from local politicians and bureaucrats, that flouted many safety norms and hampered the traffic flow severely. However, the market is very popular among the people of West Delhi. Paschim Vihar, in particular, is well known for its high street-feel and a vast variety of products available. There are all types of retailers from small hawkers selling small clothes and namkeens to large showrooms of textiles, restaurants and garments. Much of the major apparel brands' showrooms are present with Adidas, Reebok, Woodland, Lee Solly, Allen Cooper, Rich look, Cantabil and others. The locality also suffers from severe mosquito infestation despite its upscale claim raising the threat of vector borne diseases like dengue and malaria. Also the area suffers from recurrent power cuts causing severe hardship to the middle and upper class populace whereas the upper class has managed to bypass the issue by using inverters on a large scale further highlighting the class divide in India.
Another important market is the National Market in Bhera Enclave on the western side. However it is not hugely a shopping haven as for it serves majorly home decoration and utility items such as door handles, glass panes and doors. However, there is also a Reliance Fresh store and plenty of hardware and software shops along the Peera Garhi Village, where people can buy things, required for immediate demand. Other significant markets of daily utilities in the area are in GH-14, Capital Plaza in Mianwali Nagar and in Jwalapuri Camp No. 4. Nangloi. Bhera Enclave, Sunder Vihar, and Meera Bagh have plenty of retail shops, bakeries, salons, music centres, etc. Most of which are on the Nangloi Sayed Road and the road between Meera Bagh and Sunder Vihar. Sunder Vihar Market on Outer Ring Road also has plenty of shops. There are also plenty of home furnishing shops in the National Market on Chaudhary Prem Sukh Marg.
On the eastern side for recreation, there is a DDA Sports Complex spread across a campus of about four hectares. It has facilities for lawn tennis, badminton, squash, table tennis, snooker, basketball, volleyball, football, cricket, swimming pool, jogging, futsal, skating and a gymnasium.
Maharaja Agrasen Bhavan is the social hub for hosting any and all kinds of ceremonies, social and religious alike. The Lakshmi Narayan Mandir at Jwala Heri is the biggest temple in the area which frequently hosts cultural and religious events. There are also religious places for other religions, including Jain temple, Church, and Gurudwara.
There is also a super specialized hospital in Paschim Vihar, namely the Balaji Action Hospital, in A-4 Block.
Other small clinics like KK Hospital, Jiyalal Hospital, Pushpanjali Hospital, and Sodhi Nursing Home are all certified government hospitals. PsyClinic-Center for Healing Minds is a good center for mental health treatment in the B3 block.
The five-star Radisson Blu Paschim Vihar is in Sunder Vihar on the Outer Ring Road overlooking the Bhera Enclave Underpass. The hotel also houses the D-Mall.
There are also few smaller hotels opened in kothis such as the Neptune Residency.