17 months on, no trace of flowers worth ~3.5 cr planted for Amritsar G20 summit
Tribune News Service
Amritsar, August 28
Even as Member of Parliament (MP) Gurjeet Singh Aujla claimed that government departments collectively planted ornamental flowers, shrubs, flower pots, trees worth Rs 3.5 crore ahead of the G20 summit to beautify the holy city last year, these have now become rare on the roads.
The beauty of city roads visible during the G20 summit, held for five days in March last year, has not been restored till date by the authorities. Residents still yearn for those clean and beautiful roads teeming with ornamental flowers.
Citing an instance, he said a government department planted greenery valued at over Rs 50 lakh on the Amritsar-Jalandhar highway, from the Golden Gate to Jandiala village. Officials of the Amritsar Improvement Trust (AIT) said it had received only Rs 1 crore from the state government and two tenders valued at Rs 50 lakh each were floated and works carried out accordingly. Surinder Kumari, Executive Officer, Amritsar Improvement Trust, said shrubs and flowers were planted on the central verge on the Mall Road, up to Income Tax Chowk, at the Shaheed Madan Lal Dhingra Inter-State Bus Terminal, both sides of Sri Guru Ram Das Jee International Airport road up to Ajnala road.
Azad Sharma, Executive Engineer (Civil) of the PWD, who also holds additional charge of Horticulture, said his department had been given only Rs 60 lakh. The sum was invested in re-planting missing plants besides cutting, watering and undertaking complete maintenance of the nearly 8-km stretch from Court chowk up to airport. This included taking care of the central verge and green areas on both sides of the stretch. He said the annual maintenance contract had commenced in February 2023 and lasted till March.
Municipal Commissioner Harpreet Singh said the corporation did not receive any funds for planting greenery before the G20 summit here.
