Hope arises for exchange of Army land in Solan city

A ray of hope has arisen for the exchange of 2,309 sq m defence land with 3,451 sq m civil land in Solan city with a joint inspection having been conducted by the defence authorities along with the civic body staff a few days ago.

“The exchange of land, which has been hanging fire since 2008, will facilitate construction of a parking lot and a commercial project near the old bus stand here,” informed Ekta Kapta, Commissioner, Solan Municipal Corporation.

Kapta added that the defence estate officer from Ambala has sought the coordinates of the land proposed to be exchanged and they would be provided soon while other formalities were being completed to expedite the process.

Despite several rounds of talks between defence and civil authorities, the issue had remained unresolved as defence authorities had not granted possession of land to the civic body though its mutation had been executed in their favour years ago.

As per the agreement, the state government was supposed to facilitate the land exchange by providing a road from National Highway-5 near the HP Tourism Development Corporation to the Army station for unhindered movement of defence vehicles. The periphery of the land, granted to the Army authorities on the Kather bypass, lies on the National Highway-22 where the four-laning work is being executed.

The road was planned to ensure that the defence authorities had an unhindered access to their Army station after the existing access was transferred to the civil authorities.

Though a road was laid at the Kather bypass years ago, it lacked the quality and an estimated Rs 86 lakh would be spent on it. Several concerns had been raised by the defence authorities about this exchange. Officials wanted to ensure that the subsequent expansion of the road would not obstruct their access.

In a bid to expedite the exchange of land the general house of the civic body has approved payment of this amount to the defence authorities to ensure that the road was per their requirement.

It was also decided to hand over this amount to the defence authorities instead of asking the Public Works Department to execute the work.

The project, when executed, will provide parking for 156 vehicles on its three floors, along with creating commercial spaces. An amount of about Rs 11 crore is to be spent on the project. With parking being a major scarcity in Solan residents face hefty monetary penalties for idle parking every year.

Joint inspection conducted

• 2,309 sq m defence land to be exchanged with 3,451 sq m civil land
• The defence authorities along with the civic body staff had conducted a joint inspection a few days ago
• Despite several rounds of talks earlier between defence and civil authorities, the issue had remained unresolved