Fleecing continues unabated at parking lots in Ludhiana, visitors hit

Tribune News Service

Harshraj Singh

Ludhiana, March 15

Regardless of whether it was during the tenure of the previous Congress, SAD-BJP governments or the current AAP government, the public has experienced no relief from overcharging at several paid parking facilities managed by the Municipal Corporation, district administration, or any other department throughout the city. The exploitation of visitors remains a frequent occurrence at parking lots such as Bhadaur House and AC Market parking lots, as well as the MC’s multi-level parking facility adjacent to the Zone A Office, district administration’s multi-level parking lot; among others.

Contract to be cancelled, says DC

Regarding the complaints of overcharging at the multi-level parking lot of the district administration, DC Sakshi Sawhney said they had sent a notice to the contractor for cancellation and blacklisting.

Instead of taking decisive action against any contractor found to be engaging in malpractices during the past one year, the Municipal Corporation intends to conduct a fresh auction of these parking lots soon. Previously, certain NGOs had advocated that the MC should directly manage the lots instead of outsourcing them to private contractors. However, the municipal authorities had not only dismissed the request but also neglected to establish transparency in the city’s paid parking system. Questions are also being raised over the role of the MLAs and MP concerned for not coming forward to solve the serious matter for a long time.

A resident of the city, Gaganpreet Singh, expressed that people were being compelled to pay up to Rs 100 for car parking for less than two hours at Bhadaur House parking lots due to lack of oversight by MC officials. The official parking fee for a car is Rs 20 for the initial two hours. Fee slips were usually not issued to many visitors there. Moreover, a few parking fee boards were positioned in a manner that makes them difficult for visitors to properly see. It was evident that the parking contractor’s intentions were clear but the MC officials had chosen to ignore the situation. Even the elected representatives concerned have neglected to address public’s grievances.

A BJP leader, Inder Aggarwal, has alleged the presence of an active parking mafia in the city. He alleged that the AAP government’s claims to combat corruption were proving ineffective as overcharging continues at paid parking facilities. He remarked: “People are being compelled to pay amounts exceeding the prescribed parking fees at the district administration’s multi-level parking lot. This situation persists in certain parking lots managed by the corporation and at Sabji Mandi. No decisive action has been taken to eradicate the parking mafia from the city.”

DP Maur, CPI district secretary, emphasised the necessity for the district administration to formulate a concrete policy to instill transparency in city parking lots. He said: “I was charged Rs 40 for car parking at the multi-level parking lot under the district administration’s jurisdiction due to unchecked overcharging. It’s imperative to take measures to eliminate the parking mafia, which has been active not only under the current government but also during previous governments.”

AAP MLA Madan Lal Bagga acknowledged receiving a few complaints regarding overcharging at the MC’s parking lots. He said: “Necessary measures will be implemented to prevent such incidents in the future.”

MC Commissioner Sandeep Rishi said the civic body was going to conduct a fresh auction of the MC’s paid parking lots and affirmed that steps will be taken to curb overcharging.

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