Amid high drama, MC House okays transfer of V-3 roads to Chandigarh Admn

Amid uproar by the Opposition councillors, the General House of the Municipal Corporation approved the agenda regarding handing over V-3 roads to the Engineering Department of the UT Administration for maintenance. As the councillors protested, demanding for conditions such as fixing a timeframe for getting these roads back from UT, they were removed from the hall by marshals.

Related news: Anil Masih moment all over again: Chandigarh MP Manish Tewari

Proposing the shifting of the V-3 roads, Mayor Harpreet Kaur Babla said owing to the shortage of funds, these sector-dividing internal roads had not been repaired or recarpeted for years. She announced that once the roads are recarpeted, an agenda item on taking back the roads from the Administration will be tabled in House. The proposal is being passed for the benefit of the residents and also in view of the fact that it will save a lot of civic body's money, she claimed.

However, the councillors of AAP and the Congress stressed the need to put conditions such fixing a timeframe for taking back these roads from the Administration. While they were continuing with their protest, the Mayor ordered marshals to remove them from the hall. However, they continued their protest outside the hall.

City Congress president HS Lucky and AAP chief Vijay Pal Singh alleged that the BJP was cheating the resident.

Lucky said they were not against improving the condition of the roads, but only wanted to incorporate the condition of timeframe in the agenda. He said soon after Opposition councillors were thrown out of the hall, the Mayor conducted voting on the proposal, which showed their pre-planned intention. He said the party would take the issue to the public, adding that the BJP is weakening the MC.

Later, the Opposition councillors submitted a request to the MC secretary, demanding the House proceedings be declared illegal.

The agenda says the MC has approximately 71 V-3 roads under its jurisdiction, with a total of 12 feet width and 275 km length. As per the maintenance norms, resurfacing, re-strengthening and recarpeting are undertaken at an interval of five years (about 50 km every year) to maintain road quality. Owing to fund constraints, recarpeting and strengthening works have not been undertaken during the past years, resulting in deterioration of these roads. For the current financial year, 150 km of V-3 roads are due for “re-surfacing” and strengthening. The estimated cost per km is 15 lakh, making the total requirement of approximately 45 crore.

The agenda was tabled before the House in March but councillors cutting across party lines opposed it.

Meanwhile, the Mayor said on the one hand, the Opposition councillors were criticising the bad condition of the roads, but on the other, they were opposing the agenda. She was forced to call the marshalls to remove them from the hall, as they were working against public interest.

The meeting also witnessed a drama when a BJP councillor allegedly used unparliamentary language against Kuldeep Singh, former AAP Mayor.

A ruckus broke out but councillors of all parties pacified both agitating members.

Anil Masih moment all over again: Tewari

Chandigarh MP and former Union Minister Manish Tewari strongly condemned the manhandling of AAP and Congress councillors in the MC House by what he said deploying policemen masquerading as marshals. “It was the Anil Masih moment all over again,” he quipped.

Tewari said the AAP and Congress councillors were demanding that the Chandigarh Administration should transfer 30% of the Rs 5,800 crore that it gets from the Union budget to the MC. This amount was determined by the respective Finance Commissions, including the Delhi Finance Commission for the proper civic upkeep of Chandigarh or repair of the V-3 roads. But, they were brutalised at the behest of the powers-that-be in the most authoritarian manner possible.

“Why doesn’t the Chandigarh Administration take responsibility for repairing the V-6 roads along which a large number of people reside?” the senior Congress parliamentarian questioned, while adding that the V-3 roads are where the cavalcades move. Tewari said, “This spells the death knell of democracy.”

Congress double standards exposed: Malhotra

City BJP president Jatinder Pal Malhotra said the double standards of the Congress were once again exposed before the public. “Just two days ago, the Congress was staging protests on the streets over the poor condition of roads, trying to mislead people with theatrics. When the real solution was brought in, it backed out as usual,” he said.