We’re committed to providing free water, power in Chandigarh: Congress MP, AAP Mayor

Sandeep Rana

Chandigarh, June 14

A day after the Punjab Governor and UT Administrator rejected the resolutions of the Municipal Corporation House on providing 20,000 litres of free water per month per household and free parking, newly elected Congress MP Manish Tewari and AAP Mayor Kuldeep Kumar Dhalor said they were committed to fulfilling the promises made to the public and the INDIA bloc would chalk out a strategy in this regard.

A ‘Tughlaqi farman’

This is a ‘Tughlaqi farman’ and dictatorship. We will stage a protest against it. What are elected councillors for if all has to be decided by the Administrator? He is behaving like the Delhi LG. We are being stopped from doing public works. I spoke to the MP. He will also take up the issue in Parliament. — Kuldeep Kumar Dhalor, Mayor

Tewari said, “While the NDA/BJP government takes pride in providing free ration to 75 crore people, it is mind-boggling that the Chandigarh Administration rejected the unanimous resolution of the MC to provide free water to the residents of the city when, according to the Administration, the total subsidy element is only Rs 19.70 crore annually.

“This is not even a pittance of the Rs 5,862.62 crore annual budget of Chandigarh. It does not require rocket science to discern more than evident political partisanship which is manifest in this decision. The INDIA bloc remains committed to its promise of 20,000 litres of free water to each household in Chandigarh and 300 units of free power to those families that have an income of less than Rs 20,000 per month,” he shares in his post on X.

While talking to Chandigarh Tribune, Tewari said, “We will sit with our alliance partners and devise a future strategy.”

Dhalor said, “This is a ‘Tughlaqi farman’ and dictatorship. We will stage a protest against it. What are elected councillors for if all has to be decided by the Administrator? He is behaving like the Delhi LG. We are being stopped from doing public works. I spoke to the MP. He will also take up the issue in Parliament.”

Meanwhile, city BJP president Jatinder Pal Mahotra said, “There is no LG in Punjab. You (AAP) first start giving Rs 1,000 to women of Punjab you had promised in the Assembly elections. In Himachal Pradesh, Congress Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu had promised to give Rs 1,500 to women, but he has failed to keep the promise. The Congress also promised to give Rs 8,500 per month to the eldest woman of each household. Why don’t they fulfil this promise in the states ruled by the party?”

Free water and parking were the main poll promises of AAP in the 2021 MC elections. Free water and free power for low income groups prominently featured in the Congress’ manifesto during the recent Lok Sabha election in the city.