Paid parking issue to rock Mohali MC House meeting today

Akash Ghai

Tribune News Service

Mohali, June 26

Almost fourteen months after the paid parking had come to an end, the issue is again all set to rock the Municipal Corporation House meeting, scheduled for tomorrow.

The agenda of tomorrow’s House meeting has the item of discussion on reimplementation of paid parking in different markets in the town.

While the proposal has been made by Mohali Mayor Kulwant Singh, who was earlier also in the favour of paid parking in the town for several reasons, Akalis and Congress councillors have already made up their minds against it.

Talking to Chandigarh Tribune, Mohali Mayor Kulwant Singh batted for paid parking, giving reasons that the issue was very important.

“People, especially young girls, are being harassed at parking lots by anti-social elements, who usually park their vehicles wrongly behind the vehicles of girls to harass them. I get several complaints in this regard. Apart from that, haphazard parking of vehicles at the lots also causes hazard and a lot of inconvenience to people every day in the town, which now needs properly managed paid parking lots,” said Kulwant Singh.

On the other hand, several Akalis and Congress councillors have already decided to challenge the issue in the meeting.

“Implementation of paid parking in several markets of the town has already flopped last year. The markets here are not of that kind, which need paid parking. The idea is not good and we will protest against it,” said Paramjit Singh Kahlon, a councillor and president of the District Shiromani Dal (Urban).

Expressing similar views, Congress councillor Kuljit Singh Bedi said earlier too, the Congress was not in favour of it. “Our stand in this regard still remains same. We would challenge the idea this time also,” said Bedi.

It is to be noted that the contract of paid parking in certain markets of the town was given to JTS Construction Company in 2015. The private company’s contract was not revived after it ended in April, 2016, following which the system had come to an end.

Other items in the agenda include setting up of smart bins for solid waste management, change of site of modern slaughter house, operation and maintenance of public toilets, etc.