Civic body to adopt zero tolerance policy against encroachments in Amritsar

Tribune News Service
Amritsar, June 1

The Department of Local Government has set major recovery targets for the estate wing of the Municipal Corporation to generate revenue for the city. The Municipal Corporation Amritsar (MCA) owns properties worth crores and a large number of properties are on lease in the city. The lease properties, worth crores, are under the possession of various owners, even after the end of the lease term.

The estate officials claim that selling or settlement of these leased properties is one of their major agendas. “The leased properties are in prime locations and are under the possession of various institutions and individuals. There are several legal issues to get the possessions of these properties. The state government has given its nod to sell these properties on collector rate. The MC is not getting anything from these properties and we are now planning to sell these properties at market rate. We can generate good revenue from these properties”, said Dharminderjeet Singh, Estate Officer of the MC.

Apart from this, the MC owns more than 1,100 shops in the city in which tenants have been running their businesses for years. Most of them are not paying the rent. The MC has asked the tenets to buy the properties for which they have been paying the rent. Around 600 shopkeepers have shown interest in the purchase of properties, while some of them had already purchased from the MC, he said. The estate wing will try to sell maximum properties to collect revenue as tenants are paying nominal rents.

“Removal of illegal encroachment is our main liability. We don’t tolerate any new kiosks or vendors on the road, which creates hurdles in the traffic movement. The street vending zone would also be implemented soon. But we have zero tolerance for vends in the narrow markets of the city. The drive for removal of encroachment is going on. The residents should inform us if they spot any illegal encroachment in the city”, said the Estate Officer.