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New
Chandigarh: The Tribune kicks off a debate With the Punjab Government announcing setting up of New Chandigarh, a new concrete reality has come dangerously closer to the original city. Questions are being raised about the cost involved, both in terms of the impending loss to the eco-fragile Shivaliks as well as the burden that the new township will bear on the City Beautiful Chandigarh: If realty dreams were on sale, what would you buy? A property in Mullanpur? Certainly not (it sounds so rural!). New Chandigarh, most probably -- a place that abuts City Beautiful, but stands amorphic, asymmetrical and totally out of sync with the original. When the Punjab government recently announced the setting up of the new city, it was the third such attempt by politicians at creating a behemoth in concrete -- first in 1993 (when the Akalis were in opposition), then in 2000 (rechristened as Anandgarh, but got into legal troubles), and now, the Chandigarh moniker. New Chandigarh is kosher, fashionable, so goes the argument of government officials. What is at stake? Many town planners and architects say there is nothing new or Chandigarh about the emerging reality. Picture this: the new one is spread over 33 villages covering 15,000 acres and is located between two seasonal rivulets, the Jayanti Devi ki Rao and Siswan Nadi that meanders down the eco-fragile Shivaliks. This will precariously ride on the UT’s civic, entertainment, medical, shopping and other facilities. At best, or worst, it is mimicking. “It would be a dormitory town dependent on Chandigarh’s already strained infrastructure,” says a town planner. New Chandigarh would bear no resemblance with the original city. Here’s how: the restrained height of high-rises could be anything literally touching the sky. Contrast it with Chandigarh: Only up to 30 metres. The result could be a veritable civic disaster what with congestion and the pressure Chandigarh would have to inevitably bear. But the government is pressing ahead, almost steamrolling opposition, giving rise to widespread suspicion that its move would benefit the wealthy realtors. The government says the new township will boast of world-class facilities such as a state-of-the-art medi city, spa village, educity, golf course and other recreational facilities. Poor villagers, whose land is being gobbled up by this project, are dejected. They have been protesting knowing their uprooting is only months away. They would lose their livelihood. Town planners and architects argue that the government must stick to low-density country living as proposed in the regional master plan. The new city should have been planned about 50 km from Chandigarh. Anandpur Sahib could have been one such choice, they say. Tomorrow: Old wine in new bottle
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Woman attacked by stray dogs
Narrating the incident, Khushwinder Kaur, a resident of house number 725, Sector 43, said when she was returning from the gurdwara, a stray dog caught hold of her leg and bit her. “I fell on the ground. Seeing nobody around, I mustered courage and managed to shoo away the dogs. The victim’s son, Kulwinder Singh, said the dog bite cases in the sector were on the rise. “Residents of the area have approached the MC authorities a number of times to check the stray dog menace, but to no avail,” he said. Hitesh Kumar Puri, secretary of the Residents Welfare Association Sector 43 (B), said: “The MC has failed to check the menace. Residents fear venturing out in the evening and early morning hours.”
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MC proposes hike in water tariff
Chandigarh, July 13 A senior MC official said: “Though the southern sectors are thickly populated, the consumption of water is higher in the northern sectors. The northern sectors house 30 per cent of the city’s population, but 70 per cent of the water supplied to the city is consumed in these sectors.” The consumption of water is between 1,000 and 2,000 litres per person per day in northern sectors, while it is 250 litres per person per day in southern sectors. The consumption is 100 litres in colonies, said the official. Recently, a team of
JNNURM had asked the civic body officials to impose house tax and
increase water tariff to continue receiving grant under JNNURM. The MC
has already imposed house tax. MC Commissioner Vivek Pratap Singh said
after finalising the proposal, it will be tabled in the House.
Presently, 352 litters of water per capita per day is available in the
city, but still, residents are facing shortage of water.
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Industrial units to remain ‘powerless’ for 72 hours
Mohali, July 13 Anurag Aggarwal, president of the Mohali Industries Association, said the authorities were adopting a 'policy of divide and rule' by imposing a 72-hour power cut on the large-scale sector while the medium and small units were facing only a one-day weekly power cut. He said earlier the power department used to impose a 48-hour cut. He stated that now they would have to shut their units for three days
and suffer losses running into crores. Aggarwal said the owners wanted him to take up the matter with the authorities. There were 200 persons running large-scale industrial units in Mohali. He said he would meet KD Chaudhri, chairman-cum-managing director, PSPCL, next week. Former general secretary of the Mohali Chamber of Industry and Commerce Swaran Singh said it was difficult to keep their employees idle for three days a week and pay full wages.
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Bansal comes with a bagful of promises
Chandigarh, July 13 Bansal, who was addressing a rally at Colony No. 5, said slum-dwellers, whose names figured on the voters' list but were not included under the slum rehabilitation project, would be given all benefits. Bansal said earlier the Administration had raised some objections to the eligibility of some applicants. "Slum-dwellers will be given houses as per the scheme," he said. Terming BJP's rally a flop show, Bansal said the BJP was against the development of the city. They could only create ruckus in the MC house and Lok Sabha, he stated. Congress leaders Harphool Kalyan, Ram Pal Sharma, Pawan Sharma, HS Lucky and Shashi Shanker Tiwari were also present.
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NSUI national president discusses poll strategy
Chandigarh, July 13 During the informal meeting at the geology department canteen, Chaudhary was joined by NSUI leaders Brinder Singh Dhillon and Manoj Lubana. Sources said Chaudhary shared his experience as a student leader with the NSUI members at PU and discussed the strategy for the upcoming elections. Sources said the national president also met former Students’ Organisation of Panjab University (SOPU) leaders at Hotel Mountview, Sector 10. He reportedly sought their support for the student council elections at PU. “It is expected that some of the senior SOPU leaders who have been the face of the party may support the NSUI in the elections,” sources said.
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Police to paste photos of criminals in hotels
Panchkula, July 13 "Miscreants take shelter in hotels before doing a recce of an area," said Shenvi. After committing a robbery in Sector 4 last month, the robbers checked in at a hotel in Ambala. Apart from pasting photographs, the police will brief hoteliers about
the crime profile of the criminals. Recently, in a meeting convened by the Commissioner of Police, Rajbir Deswal, hoteliers and managers were asked to install CCTV cameras. They were also told to ask visitors for identity cards. They have been asked to note down the name and phone number of the visitors in a register.
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Chandigarh, July 13