Construction of link road to IIM campus stalled

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, March 27

A dilapidated stretch links the Amritsar-Jalandhar GT road to the proposed campus site of the IIM, Amritsar. The construction of this broken stretch is has been held up for acquiring another piece of land to lay a new road to connect the IIM to the Amritsar-Bathinda highway.

Meanwhile, slamming the statement of MP Gurjeet Singh Aujla the district BJP chief, Rajesh Honey, said Union Minister and senior party leader Arun Jaitley was instrumental in setting up the IIM in the holy city. He said Jaitley scuttled attempts to shift the IIM to Bathinda.

Honey said the Union Minister had fulfilled his promise made to the city electorate in the 2014 General Election. Jaitley had unsuccessfully contested the election against Capt Amarinder Singh from the Amritsar Lok Sabha seat.

Aujla had alleged that the previous SAD-BJP government had hurriedly inaugurated the proposed site for the IIM campus at Jandiala Guru, near here last year. Addressing a press conference here on Sunday, Aujla said the agency carrying out the work was now requesting four acres to provide access to the campus from another highway.

Meanwhile, a city-based NGO Amritsar Vikas Manch (AVM) alleged that the management of the IIM, Amritsar, always remained inactive and unconcerned when it came to construction of its permanent campus.

The AVM president, Kulwant Singh Ankhi, said, “Central and Punjab governments are sincere for the construction of the IIM Amritsar.” He held some officials of the management responsible for the present confusion.

He said the state government allocated 60 acres near the main GT road and sanctioned Rs 4 crore for the construction of 100-feet- wide and four-laning 750 metre long road, which connects the IIM site with the main GT road.

“The Union HRD Ministry also sanctioned Rs 15 crore more than a year ago, which is remains unutilised. Although all requirements including land and budget were fulfilled, yet not a single brick has been laid,” he added.

He said, “No advertisement to hire an architect of international repute for preparing the map (lay-out) IIM has been given. So no map, lay-out, model of administrative and academic block has not been prepared.”

He said IIMs were set up in 2014 at Sirmour (Himachal Pradesh), Vishakhapatnam (Telangana), Bodh Gaya (Bihar), Nagpur (Maharashtra), Sambalpur (Orissa) and Amritsar (Punjab).

Leaving Amritsar, in all other five IIMs the process of appointment of regular directors was completed on February 28. The appointment of director for the IIM Amritsar was cancelled at the last moment, he recalled.

He said, “It should be inquired why Rs 15 crore lies unused. To scuttle development of this prestigious institute, the management of the IIM is demanding four acres to connect the institute with the Amritsar-Bathinda National Highway No. 15. This demand can be met later when construction of all blocks of the IIM complex is complete.” “The institute has already got connectivity with the main GT road. The demand of second link road should not create any hindrance in the construction of IIM Amritsar buildings,” he maintained.