15 months on, Bathinda MC awaits Punjab govt’s nod for new complex
Acting mayor Ashok Kumar says it has been more than a year but the authorities from the state government are yet to respond on the project.
BATHINDA
The ambitious plan of the Bathinda municipal corporation to build a new complex with all its wings under one roof is in jeopardy as even after 15 months, the Punjab government has not responded to the proposal sent by the local body for approval.
In March last year, the MC had finalised the project for its new building as Punjab’s first complete zero-energy, zero-waste building in the public sector.
Officials confirmed that tenders for the construction work of the complex near the district administrative complex (DAC) would open on July 2 but the state authorities have not responded on the ₹31 crore project. The MC plans to fund the project by monetising its existing land and by raising loans from the Housing and Urban Development Corporation Limited (HUDCO).
Acting mayor Ashok Kumar said the new complex is necessitated for convenience of the people and better administrative management.
“The corporation had empowered municipal commissioner Rahul to get clearance from the government. But it has been more than a year and we are yet to hear from the state authorities. As the project is getting delayed, the matter would be brought to the notice of the House and a delegation will be sent to meet the local government minister and the department secretary,” said Kumar, a Congress leader.
MC commissioner Rahul said the competitive tenders for the proposed building were floated in February this year which would be opened on Tuesday.
“We hope that the state authorities will reply soon. The general House had passed a resolution in March last year and drawing work for the novel project was completed in time after the bids were invited for civil construction. But the MC needs a nod from the state government before going ahead with the work,” he added.
Principal secretary, local government, Ajoy Sharma declined to comment on the delay in sanctioning a nod to the project.
Sharma asked this reporter to contact the Bathinda MC for any information on it.
Another official in the local government department said that a point of view emerged against the high expenditure of the building.
“An earlier representation by the Bathinda MC reasoned that by shelling out about ₹5 crore extra on new technologies than conventional civil construction, it is worth making it a self-sustained public building. The estimated budget of the new building is ₹31 crore and the local body is expected to generate ₹18-20 crore after selling the existing building near the railway station. It was eyeing a long-term loan of ₹12 crore from the Centre but following a tussle between the Punjab government and Centre, the central funds are not immediately expected. But the central agency HUDCO is learnt to have shown interest in extending a loan to the Bathinda MC for the development project,” said the official requesting anonymity.
The proposed 5-storey compound of the MC will have a terrace garden on each floor and an innovative geothermal cooling technology that will help in controlling building temperature by about 4 degrees Celsius.
The upcoming green complex will be fully solar-powered with 120 kw generation capacity, and various features will be included to make the upcoming complex the state’s first government building to achieve the benchmark of 5-star rating for green buildings.
