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With no MD for 18 months, CITCO works suffer
Education secretary Purva Garg has been holding the additional charge of CITCO’s MD since March 2022, after Jaswinder Kaur Sidhu, a Punjab-cadre IAS officer, returned to her parent cadre
The Chandigarh Industrial and Tourism Development Corporation Limited (CITCO) has run without a regular managing director (MD) for the past 18 months, leading to significant challenges and delays in decision-making.
Education secretary Purva Garg has been holding the additional charge of CITCO’s MD since March 2022, after Jaswinder Kaur Sidhu, a Punjab-cadre IAS officer, returned to her parent cadre.
Speaking about the same, CITCO chairperson Nitin Yadav said the UT administration has already forwarded the name of a Punjab cadre officer to the ministry of home affairs (MHA) for final approval.
Another senior officer from the UT administration, meanwhile, said the corporation’s operations are suffering and major decisions are on hold.
Notably, despite issuing an expression of interest to privatise CITCO’s Chef Lake View and Mermaid restaurants at Sukhna Lake in February and shortlisting 12 agencies, no decision has been taken.
Similarly, CITCO outsourced Sector 34’s Drop-In restaurant in July last year, but has not yet commenced operations. Started in 2002, the outlet would draw in profits and was popular for its café coffee day products, but was pushed into losses amid mismanagement.
Commando Caterers’ Kanwarjit Singh Walia, who had obtained the lease for Drop-In said some interior decoration work was pending at the restaurant, but they are hopeful of opening within a couple of months.
Furthermore, CITCO has also failed to decide on a waiver of ₹1 crore for Baithak, Kalagram, which had been requested in 2022.
Subhash Narang, who leased Kalagram, expressed frustration with the lack of progress, stating that they had requested CITCO to waive their dues of ₹1 crore in 2022, but even after 18 months, no decision has been made.
₹9.5 crore grant goes unused
With CITCO failing to utilise ₹9.5 crore granted for construction of a convention centre/banquet hall by converting 48 officers’ flats at Hotel Parkview in Sector 24, the UT administration handed over the apartments to the health department in July.
Currently lying abandoned, the flats (1201 to 1248) will be now be used as a hostel for nurses and doctors. The UT administration has also directed CITCO to refund the complete amount with interest.
