Dark spots: MC project yet to see light of day

Ramkrishan Upadhyay
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, February 23

The project of illuminating the 9,300 dark spots in the city is not going to see the light of day soon.

The local Municipal Corporation (MC) has not received a single bid for a tender floated for the work some time ago. Sources said this was the fourth time that the civic body failed to get any response to the tender.

Earlier, the MC had engaged Energy Efficient Services Ltd (EESL) to carry out the work but the company failed to complete it. After failing to get any response in the past one year, the EESL finally conveyed to the MC that it cannot carry out the work.

Then, the civic body issued the tender for the fourth time, but to no avail.

MC officials said they had now relaxed a condition in the tender and hope to get a response. While the MC earlier allowed only single firm to carry out the project, now it has allowed a joint venture to participate in the tender process.

The UT Administration had agreed to provide the MC around Rs 22 crore for the work. The civic body roped in the EESL for replacement and maintenance of LEDs for seven years. The EECL had already replaced 41,000 conventional street lights with LED ones last year but the work related to illuminating the dark spots was delayed.

These dark spots are located in sectors, parks, villages and the green belts. Residents have been waiting for the work to start as these dark spots have not only led to accidents but also encouraged crime.

Baljinder Singh Bittu, president, Federation of Sectors Welfare Association Chandigarh (FOSWAC), said the MC should accord top priority to the project. 

A majority of dark spots (5,900) are found to be in southern sectors (31 to 63) and periphery against 3,400 in northern sectors (1 to 30). Mani Majra, Mauli Jagran and other colonies too have highest a large number of dark spots.