Punjab governor and UT administrator Gulab Chand Kataria on Monday slammed the municipal corporation (MC), citing that they could no longer claim the excuse regarding shortage of funds for providing civic amenities to people. Kataria, who heard 66 grievances of Hallomajra residents during his Samaadhaan Shivir (camp for providing resolution), told people to be assertive in pursuing their grievances, remarking that persistence is often required to make the system respond. People highlighted poor roads, broken sewerage, sanitation, absence of street lights and other issues in their ward.
In September last year, the MC secured a much-needed financial boost of ₹125 crores from the Union ministry of home affairs (MHA). “You cannot make excuses regarding fund shortage. Earlier, you used to cite shortage of money to even pay salaries. Now, you have received around ₹200 crore as a separate fund. There should be no excuse for not working” Kataria told Mayor Saurabh Joshi.
Directing officials to act swiftly on complaints, he asked the civic body to fix accountability and provide clear, time-bound deadlines for resolving pending issues. Other major issues raised during the meeting included no community centre in the area, a dilapidated dispensary, lack of a model school, encroachments, poor solid waste management and also lack of playgrounds for children.
Ganesh Jha, a resident, told Kataria that there the dispensary of the area had no chairs, no waiting area and no ambulance. Even doctors remain absent, he said.
A woman resident, Prabhjot, said a broken sewerage right in front of her house hadn’t been repaired despite multiple complaints. “Nobody listens. There are only fake assurances. We can’t enter our house without putting our feet in the sewage,” she said, adding that she also wrote to the UT administrator in April last year but got no response. Kataria directed officials present there to address the complaints.
This was the second Samaadhaan Shivir organised by the administration. Present on the occasion were UT chief secretary H Rajesh Prasad, along with all senior officers of the administration and representatives of various departments.
