Depts submit renovation plans for CM Mann’s new house

Deepkamal Kaur
Tribune News Service
Jalandhar, August 3
As Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann plans to shift to a government accommodation in Old Baradari, currently allotted to the Commissioner of Jalandhar Division, the PWD, Public Health, PSPCL and other departments have submitted plans and drawings to the CMO regarding the requisite infrastructural changes to be carried out in that house.
The officials are awaiting a final clearance to get the work started so that the CM is able to move in to that accommodation (house number 1) in the locality within the next few weeks. The CM’s staff, which toured the house about two weeks ago, proposed the creation of waiting lounges, sheds, more security pickets, designated parking lots and paving of more area with interlocking tiles to make it suitable for the CM to hold his twice-a-week “Bhagwant Mann Sarkar Tuhade Dwar” event in Jalandhar.
The house located in the heart of the city was constructed in 1960s. The constructed area is less while more space has been used for creating gardens, agricultural fields, walking tracks and a fish pond.
For the past two months, the CM has been putting up in a house taken on rent in Royal Estate near Jalandhar Cantonment. He rented that house ahead of the Jalandhar West bypoll. After the elections on July 24 and 25, he organised the first edition of the “Bhagwant Mann Sarkar Tuhade Dwar’.
Although the CM’s team had got erected compartmentalised German tents in the garden of the 125-marla house to make for the waiting and meeting area, it turned out to be inadequate. Nearly 1,000 persons converged on both days from across Doaba and Majha and many of them had to wait in queues extending
till the gates of the house to get seating space. Residents of the area were also getting inconvenienced because
of the restrictions on
their movement due to security protocols.
The rented house belongs to renowned physician Dr Ranbir Singh. Government officials are of the opinion that shifting to the new house would help the government save on the rent amount. Also, any kind of construction and installation of permanent fixtures could be done through the PWD and other government departments, which would not be possible in a private rented accommodation.
Officials are grappling with a bigger issue of shifting Divisional Commissioner Gurpreet Sapra to another suitable accommodation to be able to get the work started.