Ludhiana smart city project: Of 47 proposed projects, only 7 have been completed in 4 years

Though 47 projects to the tune of ₹1,133 crore have been proposed under the Ludhiana smart city project, only seven projects, costing about ₹18 crore, have completed in the last four years.

This was revealed during Ludhiana Member of Parliament Ravneet Singh Bittu’s meeting with MC officials on Monday.

The meeting was conducted to review the progress of the smart city mission, ahead of the 2022 Vidhan Sabha elections. Ludhiana mayor Balkar Singh Sandhu, senior deputy mayor Sham Sunder Malhotra, deputy commissioner Varinder Kumar Sharma, MC commissioner Pardeep Kumar Sabharwal and others were present in the meeting.

Bittu asked the officials to expedite the major projects, including the Pakhowal ROB/RUB, carcass plant, construction and demolition waste plant, legacy waste treatment, upgrade of sports infrastructure, construction of multi-storey parking in Feroze Gandhi Market, and complete these by next year.

Several projects, including the construction of C&D waste plant, carcass plant and upgrade of firefighting equipments, have been hanging fire for a long time.

2 years on, LED lights project hangs fire

The LED streetlight project, wherein the existing streetlights are to be replaced with LED lights, has not been completed so far even as an eight-month deadline was given during its inauguration in November 2018.

LSCL director Sanjay Goel said that the authorities have “lost focus” on the city’s chronic problems, including traffic and parking woes.

Projects completed so far

The projects that have been completed so far include the rejuvenation of Clock Tower, installation of rooftop solar panels in government buildings, installation of signages and purchasing poclain machines for cleaning Buddha Nullah and others.

Bittu said that the Centre has not released over ₹100 crore of grant, stating that due to this, the state government has also been unable to release the matching grant.

Speaking to the media, Bittu said, “Officials have been directed to expedite the projects. I have taken up the matter with the finance ministry. They have assured to release ₹50 crore in a few days. Authorities have been directed to complete the major projects by next year. They have also been warned of action if the projects are further delayed.”

Install plastic-recycling vending machines

Bittu also directed authorities to expedite the project to install plastic-recycling vending machines and sanitary-napkin vending machines in different parts of the city. “These are not among the major projects and can be completed in a short time period. I have directed the authorities to install the machines in different parts of the city and rope in corporate houses, wherever possible,” the MP said.

200 cusecs of water to be released in Buddha Nullah from March

Bittu said that the state government is working to rejuvenate the Buddha Nullah at the cost of ₹650 crore, and 200 cusecs of fresh water will be released from the Sirhind canal daily, from March, to bring down the pollution levels. The grant for this project is also pending.