Monorail among key 2019 election promises that BJP failed to fulfil in Chandigarh

Tribune News Service

Sandeep Rana

Chandigarh, April 25

While the city BJP is busy preparing its manifesto for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, many promises, including bringing monorail to the city, one-time settlement of issues related to the CHB and rationalising the cost of houses of 2008-self-financing housing scheme for 4,000 UT employees, made in the previous manifesto of 2019 remain unmet.

However, work on many other promises, including providing 24x7 water supply and clearing the Dadu Majra dump, is either underway or nearing completion. A total of 58 new promises on development works were made in the manifesto and many of them were from the 2014 manifesto.

Rajat Malhotra, Chairman, Chandigarh Residents Welfare Federation, said, “No solution could be found to need-based changes for the Chandigarh Housing Board (CHB) dwellers. Even though it was part of both manifestos of the BJP. The Delhi pattern needs to be adopted to enable the house dwellers to make one-time settlement.”

Promises of allowing first floor on booths, providing free wi-fi in all markets and preference to Chandigarh residents for jobs in the city, among others, remained only on paper. Another promise of laying electricity wires underground, work on which though kicked off as a pilot project in Sector 8 in an apparent half-hearted manner, never move beyond that.

Bringing monorail to the city was one of the main poll planks of MP Kirron Kher while seeking second term in Lok Sabha in 2019. Later, it was decided to have Metro instead of monorail but that project was also junked. All of a sudden, the project was revived and the plans are afoot to bring Metro to the city.

Leave alone rationalising the cost of 2008 self-financing housing scheme for UT employees, the Administration in March decided not to go ahead with it stating “the implementation of the scheme at this stage is not viable in public interest” and the money deposited by the employees in the scheme would be refunded by the CHB. Two days later, UT Administrator Banwarilal Purohit said the scheme would be revived. However, its fate continues to be hanging fire despite promises made the BJP in the past 10 years.

As far as another flagship project of the BJP to clear the dumping ground in Dadu Majra is concerned, it is being claimed to be nearing completion. A new waste processing plant, which earlier existed across the road in Sector 25, has been planned at the reclaimed land.

The project of providing pan-city round-the-clock water supply is in the tendering phase. It is a Rs 510-crore project — Rs 412 crore to come as a soft loan from a French financial institution, Agence Française de Développement (AFD) and Rs 98 crore as European Union’s grant.

Meanwhile, city BJP president Jatinder Pal Malhotra said, “Instead of monorail, Metro was found viable for the city. For one-time settlement of CHB houses, the matter has been sent to the MHA and will be got implemented on a priority basis after the elections. The 2008 self-financing housing scheme for UT employees has been revived and the rates will be rationalised. The 24x7 water supply project is on, while only 15 per cent of the dumping ground remains to be cleared. Work on fulfilling other promises was also undertaken. Our only focus is on giving a maximum of benefits to the people.”

Counting his party's achievements, the BJP chief added, “Cycle tracks, LED street lights, direct transfer benefit, free LPG, dispensaries upgrade, smart schools, effluent treatment plants, world-class railway station, new hospital at Sector 48, increasing retirement age to 60, MBBS seats, crime-free city and CCTV traffic surveillance are among several other works the BJP has carried out.”

Malhotra’s take on pending projects

City BJP president Jatinder Pal Malhotra said, “Instead of monorail, Metro was found viable for the city. For one-time settlement of CHB houses, the matter has been sent to the MHA and will be implemented on a priority basis after the elections. The 2008 self-financing housing scheme for UT employees has been revived and the rates will be rationalised. The 24x7 water supply project is on, while only 15 per cent of the dumping ground remains to be cleared.”

Lists party’s achievements

Malhotra said, “Cycle tracks, LED street lights, direct transfer benefit, free LPG, dispensaries upgrade, smart schools, effluent treatment plants, world-class railway station, new hospital at Sector 48, increasing retirement age to 60, MBBS seats, crime-free city and CCTV traffic surveillance are among several works the BJP has carried out in the city.”

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