Ambala, July 2
The Municipal Corporation Ambala, could well become an entity soon.
The notification for formation of Municipal Corporation of Ambala is expected to be issued this month.
However, there is a growing feeling among local residents that the corporation might not be the panacea for the development-related ailments. The plan of the Haryana Government to club together Ambala city and Ambala cantonment under the Municipal Corporation of Ambala has also led to concern among people.
Ambala cantonment MLA Mr Anil Vij said that he was keen for formation of Municipal Corporation of Ambala but the Municipal Corporation should only take Ambala cantonment under its fold. “If Ambala city and Ambala cantonment are taken together, then it will not augur well for development. It is not a good idea to club Ambala cantonment with Ambala city,” he said.
Mr Vij said it would be possible to meet the population figure of three lakhs even if the Municipal Corporation is formed of Ambala cantonment alone. “The area in Ambala cantonment should include the civil area of Cantonment Board like Topekhana Bazar, Malli Parade, Railway colony and the Bungalow area,” he said.
He said that Ambala Sadar was formed under the excision agreement and a further excision of the civilian areas under Cantonment Board is possible. “The biggest hurdle for combining Ambala city with Ambala cantonment is that there is a difference in land regulations. The lack of similarity in land holding regulation within a single corporation would be a hindrance,” he said. “As a matter of fact, the land issue will get more complicated,” he added.
Dr Vinay Kumar Malhotra of Gandhi Memorial National College, Ambala cantonment observed that in October 2002, the Haryana Assembly passed amendments in the Municipal Act that envisaged converting the municipal councils of Rohtak, Hisar, Panipat, Gurgaon, Ambala and Jagadhari-Yamuna Nagar into municipal corporations.
“The Ambala Sadar municipality was carved out of civilian area of the Ambala cantonment. At that time an impression was given to people that civilian municipality will be more beneficial and flexible than cantonment. But that euphoria soon disappeared. The cantonment area is well laid out, well kept and there is semblance of good governance. On the contrary municipal administration has failed. There is four-fold increase in house tax but no corresponding improvement in civic amenities,” he said.
Dr Malhotra said that as per the Haryana Municipal Council Act, “resolution” demanding the conversion into corporation is required from the respective councils. “It is interesting to note that both the elected councils of Ambala city as well as Ambala cantonment have recently resolved against creation of the corporation,” he said.
He opined that corporation will put enhanced financial burden on the people. Also, many villagers are not in favour of being included in the corporation limits as they fear that the vacant common land of these villages will be converted into residential colonies.
“If headquarter of the proposed corporation is based in Ambala city, then Sadar people will have to cover a distance of 12 Km to go to municipal corporation office to get work done and the same difficulty will be posed other way round,” Dr Malhotra stated.
Chairman of the Citizens Council Dr NC Jain said the formation of the Municipal Corporation with Ambala city and Ambala cantonment does not seem to be viable. “There is a gap between Ambala city and Ambala cantonment GT road and railway line runs between the two towns. Also, there is a substantial Cantonment area. Hence, the viability for the formation of corporation seems difficult,” he said.
“The government proposal to merge 56 villages into the corporation will be detrimental for both the twin towns as the funds will be used up by the villages,” Dr Jain said.
