Dharamsala Smart City project courts controversy
Lalit Mohan
Dharamsala, July 30
The Smart City project of Dharamsala is once again in controversy over faulty planning. The Union Ministry for Housing and Urban Affairs has written to the Additional Chief Secretary (ACS) Urban Development, Himachal Pradesh, to take action against the alleged faulty planning for laying ducts along roads in the city under the Dharamsala Smart City Project.
The Union Ministry has written to the ACS, Urban Development, Himachal, on the basis of a complaint of a Dharamsala resident.
In a letter to the Union Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs, Amit of the Civil Lines area in Dharamsala said that under the smart city project the ongoing work of digging and laying of pipes was being done on one side of the road and concreting of drain work was being executed on the other side from Khaniyara to Sidhpur.
As of now, there is no provision for a proper sewerage in many areas. Over the past five years or so, the Jal Shakti Department has made a plan for the sewerage system of Dharamsala, but the work is not being executed due to paucity of funds.
“How we define a smart city in the absence of a proper sewerage plan. The Dharamsala Smart City authorities have no plan as such for the sewerage and in future if the Jal Shakti Department plans to execute it, they would have to either dig the side where the drains are being made today or they will have to dig the pipes that are being laid for electrical and Internet optical fibre cable,” Amit has written in the complaint.
He has further stated that it is clear that the Dharamsala Smart City authorities are not working in coordination with other departments and the funds are being utilised inappropriately, without keeping all important aspects in mind. If things go on in the same manner, the general public of Dharamsala will face problems in future.
Dharamsala residents have been raising their voice against the alleged poor quality of planning and execution of Smart City Dharamsala project. Former commissioner of Dharamsala and MD Dharamsala Smart City project JM Pathania has been at the forefront in creating awareness among the masses regarding the poor planning and execution of the project and how the city had lost the opportunity to improve its infrastructure.
