Multi-storey parking in Palampur priority: CPS

Our Correspondent

Palampur, January 23

Ashish Butail, Chief Parliamentary Secretary (CPS), said here today that the construction of a multi-storey parking in the town was his top priority.

Butail, while talking to mediapersons, said that the project had been hanging fire for the past 12 years though the local Municipal Corporation had already transferred eight kanals to the state Urban Development Department for the project. The previous BJP government did not execute the project despite his (Butail’s) best efforts. Besides, the cost of the project had also gone up manifold in the past 12 years.

He said that former CMs Prem Kumar Dhumal and Virbhadra Singh had laid the foundation stone of the project in 2008 and 2014, respectively. The Dhumal government had announced the construction of the parking project under the private-public partnership (PPP) mode but it never took off.

Butail, who is attached to the Chief Minister and holds Urban Development portfolio, said that he would soon convene a meeting of all stakeholders to ensure early execution of the project. He would also request the Chief Minister to allocate funds for the Asian Development Bank (ADB) project.

The High Court of Himachal Pradesh had dismissed the appeal of the builders who had been allotted the project and now there were no hurdles in calling fresh bids.

There has seen a manifold increase in the number of vehicles in the town. Over 6,000 to 8,000 vehicles are added to the total number of vehicles in the town and its adjoining areas every month.

With the increase in the number of vehicles, the parking space available is getting squeezed further, causing inconvenience to people. At present, there is a provision for parking only 70 vehicles.

Residents, students, businessmen and tourists are forced to park their vehicles in the no-parking zone.

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