Cut in tribal development fund irks Pangi residents

Naresh Thakur

Chamba, June 23

People of Pangi are miffed over a cut in the budget for the valley under the Tribal Area Development Programme (ITDP), specifically the budget for Public Works Department (PWD), for the fiscal year 2024-25.

Tourism potential remains untapped

• The region suffers from a lack of active and effective supervision by elected political representatives, resulting in inadequate administrative control resulting in the region still lacking in terms of basic facilities, including roads, electricity, communication network, health and education
• The valley also has lot of tourism potential, but that too remains untapped due to inadequate road infrastructure

Under the ITDP, the government has earmarked a budget of Rs 43.13 crore for the Pangi region, a tribal landlocked valley in Chamba district, which is about 16 per cent less than the previous year’s budget of Rs 51.23 crore.

Residents of Pangi, which remains cut off from the rest of the state in the winter season, said the cut in the budget would severely hamper the development projects in the valley.

Trilok Thakur, the president of Pangwal Ekta Manch, an umbrella body of Pangi residents that raises the issue related to the region on various platforms, said the budget for PWD has been slashed by over 47 per cent. While the budget allocation for the PWD under ITDP was Rs 23.21 crore last year, this year it has been brought down to a meagre Rs 12.13 crore, he claimed.

Major allocations included Rs 6 lakh for helipad construction, Rs 4.50 crore for rural roads, Rs 3 crore for roads under NABARD and Rs 3 lakh for major district roads.

Similarly, Rs 20 lakh has been allocated for the black spot improvement, Rs 1.25 crore for the Chief Minister Road Scheme, Rs 10 lakh for roadside plantation, Rs 75 lakh for the upkeep of major bridges, Rs 50 lakh for ropeways and cableways. Thus, a total budget of Rs 11.74 crore has been allocated for the roads and bridges of the region.

He said Rs 40 lakh has been allocated for bus stand construction and Rs 1 crore under the PWD general pool for housing, adding that a similar amount has been allocated to the non-development budget.

Thakur points out the inadequacy of the current budget allocation, given the region’s challenging topography and pressing infrastructure needs. “The budget allocation is inadequate for the extensive needs of the valley. The area spreads across 1,595 sq km and comprises 55 revenue villages. We need much more funding to address the infrastructure development requirements,” added Thakur.

The manch is also calling for public support to restore the Pangi Assembly constituency, which they believe is crucial for effective local leadership and sustainable development.

Thakur said the valley, located 177 km from the district headquarters in Chamba via the Sach Pass, a seasonal route, which opens only between June and October. Pangi is part of the Bharmour Assembly segment. In winters, the people need to travel more than 700 km via Manali or Jammu and Kashmir to reach Chamba or Bharmour.

The region suffers from a lack of active and effective supervision by elected political representatives, resulting in inadequate administrative control resulting in the region still lacking in terms of basic facilities, including roads, electricity, communication network, health and education. The valley also has lot of tourism potential, but that too remains untapped due to inadequate road infrastructure.

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