E-Paper
‘Shortage’ of manhole covers sparks ruckus during Ludhiana MC House meet
Councillors from the Shiromani Akali Dal and the Lok Insaaf Party accused Ludhiana MC officials of not supplying manhole covers in their wards, making them “victims” of public fury and embarrassment
While councillors from all political parties lauded Ludhiana mayor and MC commissioner during the zero hour of the MC House for their efforts towards the development of the city, the issue of lack of manhole covers divided the House and triggered a ruckus.
Councillors from the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and the Lok Insaaf Party (LIP) accused MC officials of not supplying manhole covers in their wards, making them “victims” of public fury and embarrassment.
SAD leader Sarabjit Singh raised the issue in the House following which he gathered support from a few other councillors, including Harwinder Kaler of the LIP.
However, Congress councillor Jai Prakash, who is also the chairperson of the MC purchase committee, countered the allegations claiming that 700 spare covers were lying with the civic body which were supplied to JEs and SDOs timely.
Kaler-Mamta face-off
Heated arguments ensued between Kaler and Congress councillor Mamta Ashu after the former accused Jai Prakash of getting signatures from the councillors even before supplying the required material. Strongly condemning Kaler, Mamta referred to Jai Prakash as the most honest and senior-most councillor of the Congress in Ludhiana. All councillors of the Congress, along with the mayor, supported him.
Strict action recommended against SDOs, JEs
Councillors, during the discussion at the zero hour, blamed JEs and SDOs for not supplying the development and construction materials, including manholes covers, to them despite repeated requests. Taking strict note of it, the mayor asked the senior officials to fix the responsibility of JEs and SDOs to deliver the material in a time-bound manner and also take strict action against them for lackadaisical attitude.
“We are spending huge amount of money on the development works and despite availability of the required material, JEs are not supplying them to the councillors in time, which is unacceptable. I will take serious action against them in case of any further negligence,” the mayor said.
Congress councillors even called a few JEs and SDOs useless and corrupt.
The mayor, meanwhile, directed the zonal commissioners to hold regular meetings with the councillors to resolve petty issues such as manhole covers, streetlights and leakage in pipes.
“Such issues should be resolved at zonal levels rather than taking them up with the mayor and commissioner,” Sandhu said.
SAD councillor Jaspal Giaspura, who is also the leader of opposition in the MC general House, sought vigilance inquiry against those officials who refused to issue tender to a database company citing its non-eligibility. “The same company got the tender for two consecutive years and around 105 staffers were deputed in the said company. How did it not fulfil the eligibility criteria for the third time? A vigilance investigation is necessary in this case,” he added.
Giaspura also accused the road contractors of using poor-quality material in the construction, causing wastage of finances and resources.
“Crores can be saved if the roads are built using material of higher quality. Recently, a road worth ₹2 crore was constructed by the committee after availing loans and it got damaged after few days,” he added.
Councillor Sukhdev Bawa, while raising serious concerns over contaminated water and foul odour in his ward number 4 due to illegal slaughtering, sought immediate action from MC commissioner Pardeep Kumar Sabharwal. He said the slaughtering is done near temples and government schools in his area, which causes problems for the locals.
Sabharwal ordered a probe and directed officials to visit the sites and take the necessary action.
