Dharamsala gets 9 more months to finish projects, finally be Smart

Raghav Guleria

Dharamsala, June 30

The ongoing projects of Smart City Dharamsala have now got a new lease of life with an extension for the third time till March 31, 2025, to complete all its unfinished works.

What still needs to be done

• Smart road from School Education Board office to bus stand
• Barrier-free smart bus shelter and night street food market
• Provision of shopping complex near cricket stadium
• 7, 000 smart LED lights to be installed in the city
• Root Zone Treatment Plant Naddi- Barrier free smart bus shelter
• Connecting of merged areas of the city with sewerage
• Installation of CCTV cameras at prominent places
• Establishment of Integrated Command and Control Centre
• Footpath from Central Co-op Bank Chowk to HPCA Cricket Stadium

Another opportunity

Smart City Dharamsala has been granted nine months extension for the completion of its ongoing projects. The financial assistance was already there and this additional time would give us an opportunity to conclude the project assignments before 31 March, 2025. Hopefully, a majority of the tasks would be completed within the stipulated period. — Zafar Iqbal, CEO, Smart City Dharamsala

In 2016, Dharamshala was given the status of a Smart City, under which all the works were to be completed by June 2021. Many developmental works could not see the light of the day, so this deadline was extended to June 30, 2023. These additional two years proved to be insufficient and the works could not be completed on time.

Smart City has now got another extension from the Centre to complete its various projects which will hopefully result in completion of the ongoing works.

Now the major development works of the city like multi-storey parking near the bus stand, smart road etc. will get completed. The work of smart street lights is also lying incomplete. Besides, e-toilets have not been installed at any place. The proposed smart road in the city is still a distant dream. Although it will be challenging to complete all the work even in nine months, yet the administration is hopeful most of it will be completed.