Nidhi.Bhardwaj@timesofindia.comLudhiana: Plans to construct multi-level car parking lots in the city have resurfaced, with officials initiating discussions on the directions of local bodies minister Sanjeev Arora.Despite the acute need for organised parking spaces in Ludhiana, two multi-level car parking (MLCP) projects proposed in Feroze Gandhi Market and Pratap Bazaar under the Smart City Mission were dropped during the tenure of the previous Congress government. Officials are now considering reviving such projects on a build-operate-transfer (BOT) basis.Feroze Gandhi Market, regarded as the city’s financial hub, once had adequate parking facilities with no vehicular spillover onto roads. Over the years, however, the situation has deteriorated, leading to chaos and regular traffic congestion. At present, five small parking lots operate in the market, but these remain overcrowded, forcing people to park vehicles on the roadside and triggering long traffic jams.Officials had earlier proposed a multi-level parking facility in the area with a capacity of around 650 cars. However, the market association had flagged the capacity as insufficient, citing the heavy footfall in the market that houses the main branches of most major banks, the Ludhiana Stock Exchange and several commercial establishments. Officials from the local bodies department had also advised the municipal corporation (MC) to consider the high cost of the project, which was estimated at Rs 75 crore.At Pratap Bazaar, the MC could not obtain a no-objection certificate from the zila parishad, despite land being available for the project. Sources said fresh plans are now being worked out for the area.According to sources, local bodies minister Sanjeev Arora recently held a meeting with officials from concerned departments and directed them to review earlier proposals and prepare new ones wherever suitable sites for parking facilities are identified.Rahul Verma, a Sarabha Nagar-based businessman involved in planning discussions, said new locations could also be explored as vehicle ownership has increased significantly, while parking space remains limited. He said areas such as Feroze Gandhi Market, Ghumar Mandi and parts of the old city urgently require better traffic management, adding that without designated parking facilities, advising people against roadside parking is ineffective.MC superintending engineer Sham Lal Gupta said discussions on the issue were underway.Earlier attempts to ease parking pressure through other initiatives also failed to materialise. Plans to construct an underground parking facility at Ferozepur Road for shoppers of Ghumar Mandi did not take off, while proposals to use the basement of a multi-level building on Rani Jhansi Road also remained unimplemented.Project Stalled Repeatedly–Multi-level car parking plans in Ludhiana revived on directions of local bodies minister Sanjeev Arora–Multi level car parking projects at Feroze Gandhi Market and Pratap Bazaar were dropped during previous Congress govt–Feroze Gandhi Market faces severe parking crunch despite five existing parking lots–Earlier proposal for 650-car parking found inadequate by market association–Pratap Bazaar project stalled earlier due to lack of NOC from zila parishad–Estimated cost of Feroze Gandhi Market parking project pegged at Rs 75 crore–Previous plans for underground parking at Ferozepur Road and Rani Jhansi Road basement failedMSID:: 130141544 413 |
