Setting June 30 as the deadline to make Ludhiana “manhole-free and pothole-free”, Punjab Local Government Minister S. Harjot Singh Bains on Friday directed all municipal officials to report on the ground daily from 7 am to 8 am under “Mission Clean Punjab” launched by Chief Minister S Bhagwant Singh Mann led Punjab Government. During an early-morning surprise inspection of Ludhiana Municipal Corporation (MC) areas, S. Harjot Singh Bains took a serious note of stagnant rainwater and garbage along National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) roads passing through the city.
“If the NHAI does not clean the road, the municipal corporation will do it and bill them. In case of non-performance, a fine will also be imposed,” S. Bains asserted following a three-hour ground visit.
While reviewing monsoon preparedness with the MC officials, S. Harjot Singh Bains directed the officials that all the sewerage lines must be cleared by the end of this month. The MC officials apprised the Local Government Minister that 49 km of the 220 km sewer lines targeted for cleaning had been prioritised.
Of this, 47 per cent has already been desilted and the remaining work will be completed by June 30. Road projects worth Rs 172 crore are currently underway in Ludhiana to improve civic infrastructure, The Local Government Minister directed officials to ensure that all missing and damaged manhole covers in Ludhiana should be replaced and road repair works across the city must be completed by the June 30.
To strengthen civic response during the monsoon, he also ordered the municipal corporation to set up a 24x7 “War Room” to monitor water-logging, sewer blockages and rain-related complaints in real time. S. Bains further directed the MC to procure its own shrub cutters, beautify traffic junctions, paint road corners, install new dustbins, identify fresh sites for garbage compactors and make defunct tubewells and streetlights functional again.
MLA Rajinder Pal Kaur Chhina, Mayor Inderjit Kaur, Senior Deputy Mayor Rakesh Prashar, Punjab Dalit Development Board Chairman Vijay Danav, Joint Commissioners Vineet Kumar, Amanpreet Singh and Tapan Bhanot, Zonal Commissioners Neeraj Jain, Gurpal Singh and Jasdev Singh Sekhon, Health Officer Dr Vipal Malhotra and Chief Sanitation Officer Ashwani Sahota were also present in the review meeting.