Multi-storey parking project in Palampur stalled for 15 years

A multi-storey parking project in Palampur has been delayed for over 15 years, leaving residents grappling with a worsening traffic situation. In 2009, the Municipal Corporation transferred eight kanals of land to the state urban development department for the project. However, the land remains unused.

Initially, a private builder from Haryana was assigned the project under a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). Despite the agreement, the builder failed to execute the plan. In 2021, the state government cancelled the agreement and assured residents that the project would be carried out by the government.

When the Congress government took office in 2022, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu promised to execute the project with financial aid from the Asian Development Bank (ADB). However, two years later, no progress has been made, and ADB has shown little interest in supporting the project.

The traffic situation in Palampur has worsened, with 7,000 to 9,000 new vehicles added to the town and its surrounding areas each month. As parking spaces become increasingly scarce, more vehicles are being parked along roadsides, causing frequent traffic jams. Currently, the town has parking provisions for only 100 vehicles, far below the growing demand.

In addition, a smaller parking lot, designed to accommodate 60 vehicles, remains incomplete after the contractor abandoned the job due to a dispute with the local Municipal Corporation.

Despite previous foundation stones laid by former Chief Ministers Prem Kumar Dhumal in 2008 and Virbhadra Singh in 2014, the project has seen no tangible development. Residents, students, businessmen, and tourists are left with no choice but to park in no-parking zones, further aggravating the traffic chaos.

The stalled project continues to affect daily life, as Palampur struggles with the mounting pressure on its infrastructure.