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TRICITY: 25 GOOD THINGS TO EXPECT IN 2025

Jan 01, 2025 05:30 AM IST

With the arrival of the New Year, tricity readers can look forward to the completion of pending infrastructure projects to decongest traffic on Airport Road, hope for safer public spaces with Mohali police installing CCTVs, and improved healthcare.

Metro or not: The eight-member committee constituted in November to evaluate the financial and economic feasibility of plying the Metro as the tricity mass rapid transit system will submit its report in January 2025. The committee, tasked with analysing reports on similar projects in other towns, will coordinate with RITES Limited to see its financial viability to ease congestion. If approved, the detailed project report will be prepared in March. With 14 lakh registered vehicles and a population of 12 lakh, Chandigarh has the highest density of vehicles per household in the country. In addition, over two lakh vehicles on inter-state routes cross the city daily. Neighbouring Mohali has 4.88 lakh registered vehicles, more than its population.

HOPE, JOY, LOVE & LUCK: Youngsters ring in the New Year in style at the Sukhna Lake in Chandigarh. (Ravi Kumar/HT)
HOPE, JOY, LOVE & LUCK: Youngsters ring in the New Year in style at the Sukhna Lake in Chandigarh. (Ravi Kumar/HT)

Power privatisation: The UT administration will be transferring power services assets to Kolkata-based RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group by February 2025. The administration had invited bids for privatisation on November 9, 2020, and RPSG emerged the highest bidder at 871 crore. Though employees approached the Punjab and Haryana high court against the move, their plea was dismissed on November 7. Dissatisfied, they headed to the Supreme Court that junked their plea, too, paving the way for the privatisation. The administration has reiterated that power rates will continue to be regulated by the joint electricity regulatory commission (JERC). Privatisation is expected to improve operational performance, infrastructure upgrade and grievance redressal, benefiting consumers.

PU multipurpose auditorium: Panjab University (PU) will open its multipurpose auditorium in the South Campus fromMarch 2025. The project was launched by then prime minister Manmohan Singh in 2009. More than 80 crore has been spent on the project, four times of what was initially expected. The auditorium has a seating capacity of over 2,400. Besides the main auditorium, there are three seminar halls that can accommodate up to 600 people. The total covered area is 1.4 lakh sq ft and the complex includes a parking area, approach roads, substation, power backup, AC plant, elevators and a firefighting system. It has a VIP workshop, green and rehearsal rooms as well. The university wants to hold the 2024-25 convocation there.

Pinjore fruits and vegetable market: The 220-crore fruit and vegetable market at HMT Pinjore, touted to be the largest of its kind in Asia, will become operational by March 2025. The market is a 45-minute drive from Chandigarh and 20 minutes from Panchkula. Spread over 78 acres, the market is being developed in two phases. Haryana chief minister Nayab Singh Saini inaugurated the first phase in July that is being built for 14.66 crore, covering 10 acres. The second phase will feature 52 shops, adding to the 312 plots planned for the site, of which 110 plots have already been auctioned and 60 constructed. At present, only the apple market is operational, while the fruit and vegetable sections await completion in the second phase.

Zirakpur ring road: The National Highways Authority of India has revived the Zirakpur ring road project, stalled for 11 years, by providing an alternative route for Shimla-bound traffic from Ambala. Work on the 1,329-crore project begins in April 2025 and will be completed in two years. The 200-ft wide, six-lane bypass will run for 16.5km from the Patiala-Zirakpur light point (airport junction) to the Old Panchkula traffic crossing. It will cross the Ambala-Zirakpur highway near McDonald’s, pass through Peer Muchalla, Sanoli, Gazipur, and Nagla, all in Mohali district, before merging with the dividing road between Sectors 20 and 21 in Panchkula. Shimla-bound traffic will be able to take this road, bypassing the bottleneck at Zirakpur.

Advanced Neurosciences Centre: The Post-Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh, will open its Advanced Neurosciences Centre (ANC) by April 2025. The 300-bed facility to be built at a cost of 495.31 crore will offer specialised care, upgrading the current capabilities of the hospital. The ANC will feature latest lab and services, including critical and emergency services. Sub-specialties such as cerebrovascular surgery, skull base surgery, spinal functional neurosurgery, and a brain suite will be available, reducing the need for patients to seek treatment abroad. The centre will also introduce neuro-critical care and emergency neurology services, with plans for a fully equipped 25-bed critical care unit and an independent 24-hour emergency service with 15 beds.

Mullanpur to Baddi road: To decongest traffic, the NHAI will build a four-lane ring road from Majri Chowk in Mullanpur to Baddi in neighbouring Himachal Pradesh via Siswan. The construction will begin inApril 2025 and will be completed in 18 months. At present, motorists take the single road from Baddi to New Chandigarh to reach Post-Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research in Sector 12. The 18-km stretch is a part of the ring road to be built around Chandigarh. The rapid development in the suburbs of Mullanpur (New Chandigarh) Dera Bassi, Kharar, Morinda, and Pinjore has necessitated the ring road.

Green corridor: With the Chandigarh administration resuming work on the non-motorised transport (NMT) green corridor in November 2024, the project is set to be ready by May 2025. The 8-km corridor, being built at an estimated cost of 5 crore under the Chandigarh Master Plan-2031, will connect Capitol Complex in Sector 1 to Sector 56, running along N-Choe from the northern to the southern part of the city. The project is a step towards reducing carbon emissions and improving the overall quality of life for city residents by designating a 10-ft wide, well-lit and secure route for cyclists and pedestrians. This is the first of 11 such stretches planned under the master plan.

Railway station upgrade: The redevelopment of Chandigarh railway station is set to be complete byMay 2025. 80% of the construction is complete with the air concourse work under progress. According to minister of state for railways Ravneet Singh Bittu, the foot-over bridge, station buildings on both sides and parking, will be ready by February. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to inaugurate the 462-crore project. The new station will have separate areas for arrivals and departures. G+3 station buildings of (60m x 42m) on both Chandigarh and Panchkula side with 30 lifts, 10 escalators and two foot-over bridges of 12 metres are coming up. Parking area of 25,000 sqm has been developed. The daily footfall at Chandigarh station is 36,000 and over 80 trains pass through it.

Smart parking: Conceptualised in August 2022, the smart parking project in Chandigarh is expected to take off in March 2025, with the municipal corporation extending the deadline for filing bids yet again. The project aims to introduce a FASTag-enabled parking management system in all 89 parking lots of the city. On August 1, the MC floated a tender to invite private firms for the project in public-private partnership (PPP) mode. After receiving the bids, the MC will carry out financial and technical evaluation. It will take the firm six months to convert existing lots into smart ones. Residents can expect to see the improved parking system, including a mobile app for booking slots and dynamic pricing, by November 2025.

Pinjore-Baddi-Nalagarh four-laning: The four-laning of the 36-km Pinjore-Baddi-Nalagarh national highway stretch, a key route connecting Haryana with Himachal Pradesh, will be complete by August 2025. The highway, which sees nearly 20,000 vehicles plying on it, is a vital link for industries in Baddi and Nalagarh. The four-laning project involves building 104 culverts, 16 minor bridges, five major bridges, and a flyover, many of which are incomplete. The project on which 774.78 crore has already been spent is running behind schedule due to pre-construction delays, including disbursement of land acquisition compensation and permission for soil extraction. Work began nearly three years ago and was to be completed by September 2023.

Mother and Child Centre:The construction of a Mother and Child Centre at Panchkula’s Civil Hospital at Sector 6, which began in May 2021, is set to see the light of day in 2025. Built at a cost of 113 crore, the 7+3 structure (seven hospital floors and three parking levels) is designed to address the increasing demand. The centre will feature 200 additional beds, bringing the total capacity to 500. Of these, 100 beds are dedicated to gynaecology and 100 to paediatrics. Specialised facilities will include three ICU wards, nine operation theatres, and 28 general wards with six beds each. Additional provisions include three sick newborn care units, 22 private wards, and dedicated emergency departments with ICUs for gynaecology and paediatrics.

New Chandigarh-Kurali road: After missing several deadlines, the Greater Mohali Area Development Authority project to upgrade the 8.9-km PR 4 road, connecting the Kurali-Siswan road with the UT boundary in Mullanpur (New Chandigarh) will be completed by February 2025. The 200-ft-wide road covers the key stretch to the cricket stadium. The construction of three bridges and public health services has been commissioned en route. The authorities faced flak for not completing the project before March 2024 when the stadium hosted its first Indian Premier league (IPL) match. The 115-crore project will provide better connectivity between the UT and the Punjab Cricket Stadium (PCA) in New Chandigarh, which will host international matches soon. It will reduce traffic congestion in Kharar.

E-challaning in Mohali: From January 2025, commuters can hope for safer travel in Mohali as traffic violators will be served e-challans on their phones. Punjab Police are installing CCTV cameras at 20 junctions. Punjab Police Housing Corporation is setting up these cameras at a cost of 17.7 crore. The 405 CCTV cameras will be a help since Mohali has only 115 police personnel to manage traffic. The state transport authority is testing the software. The command-and-control centre has been set up at Sohana police station, where the integration process is almost complete. Of the 20 vulnerable locations, 17 have been covered. The remaining are held up because GMADA plans to build roundabouts at Sohana Gurdwara Chowk and Radha Soami Chowk.

Decongesting Airport Road: The NHAI will complete its greenfield project to decongest Airport Road in Mohali by May 2025. The 32-km stretch from IT Chowk (PR-7) near the airport to Kurali-Chandigarh road is being built in an area that has not seen any development so far. This stretch will serve as an alternative route for those heading from Delhi to Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir. It’s being built under the Centre’s Bharatmala Pariyojna at a cost of 1,400 crore. While 700 crore has been given for land compensation, the remaining 700 crore is earmarked for building the highway. NHAI director Pradeep Attri said the Ambala-Chandigarh greenfield project would be ready by October 2025. The Zirakpur and Sector 20-21, Panchkula, flyovers will be operational by January 15.

800 CCTVs in Mohali: To curb street crimes in Mohali, 800 high-definition CCTV cameras will be installed in the district in early 2025. With features, including automatic number plate recognition, 568 of them will be put up at crime hotspots in Mullanpur, Kharar, Zirakpur and Dera Bassi. While 101 cameras will be installed at 24 crime spots in Zirakpur and 143 cameras will be installed at 36 locations in Mullanpur, 211 cameras will be installed at 51 crime hotspots in Kharar and 113 cameras will be installed at 33 sites across Dera Bassi. Forty-seven more such cameras will be installed in the periphery. Focus is on inter-state entry and exit points for surveillance. Control rooms would be in jurisdictional police stations.

Panchkula MC office: The Panchkula municipal corporation (MC) office building in Sector 3, originally planned for completion in April 2021, will be ready in 2025. The building covers four floors, including the basement of 4526.31 sqm for parking, generator sets, and AC plants. The ground floor, spanning 2407.57 sqm, will have a customer facilitation centre, a canteen, and a hall. The first floor is designated for administrative offices, while the second will accommodate the engineering branch. The third floor will have the accounts branch and district town planner’s office among other functions and the fourth is planned for the senior deputy mayor’s office and House meetings. Mayor Kulbhushan Goyal says the tendering process will begin in January and work will be completed in 2025 itself.

Shorter ride to airport: To decongest Airport Road (PR-7), GMADA is constructing a shorter route at a cost of 125 crore. During the unified metropolitan transport authority meeting on September 2, Punjab chief secretary Anurag Verma announced that the shorter route to the airport will be ready in a year. The new route will reduce the distance from Chandigarh to the airport from 11.6km to 8.5km. The shorter route will be via the traffic junction of Sectors 65-66 (Bawa White House) to Sector 66-B. This road was proposed after a direct link from Sector 48, Chandigarh, to the airport, suggested by the UT administration and Haryana government, didn’t materialise due to opposition from Punjab.

Ecocity-2 extension: After acquiring land in New Chandigarh in 2013, GMADA will launch Ecocity-2 (Extension) in January. The decision was taken during a meeting chaired by Punjab housing and urban development secretary Rahul Tiwari on November 11. The new scheme will comprise both residential and commercial plots spread over 96 acres. For the first time, GMADA will introduce 300 sq yard commercial showrooms and 60 sq yard double-storeyed bay shops. A total of 153 residential plots, including 135 of 500 square yards and 18 of 1,000 square yards, will be allocated. There are four sites for group housing societies measuring 2.5 acres and a four-acre school site. There will be 68 commercial plots, including nine of 300 square yards, a club on 3.04 acres and a dispensary.

PGIMER parking: Hanging fire for eight years, the second multi-level parking next to the New OPD at Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research is to be completed in 2025. Estimated to cost 63 crore, the new parking facility is being set up on 26,000 square metres with seven floors besides a basement. With each floor set to accommodate 80 cars, the structure will have a total capacity of 680 cars. At present, the parking space in the institute can accommodate 3,753 cars, even though around 20,000 vehicles enter the campus daily. The existing three-storeyed parking in front of the New OPD can accommodate 600 cars. Due to inadequate space, visitors park vehicles on internal roads, causing traffic snarls.

Advanced mother and childcare centre: The PGIMER’s 300-bed advanced mother and childcare centre will be ready in early 2025. Approved in 2017, the state-of-the-art facility aims to address critical gaps in maternal and neonatal care across North India. The estimated cost of the project is 300 crore. The centre has two basements, a ground floor and five floors with a total built-up area of 43,113.37 square metres. The total height of the building shall be 26.4 metres. Besides a 208-car parking facility and a five-star GRIHA-rated green building design, phase 1 of the building will have 150 obstetric beds, 104 neonatal care beds, a level IV NICU, modular operation theatres, high-risk maternity units, and a human milk bank.

Legacy waste: The Chandigarh MC has announced that the Dadumajra landfill will be cleared of all legacy waste by July 2025. Due to inadequate processing facilities, waste management has been a challenge, resulting in two legacy waste mounds of 5 lakh MT and 8 lakh MT at the Dadumajra landfill in the few past decades. The entire 5 lakh MT waste, dumped before 2005, was processed and cleared by December 2022 under a Smart City project. Bio-remediation of the second mound of 8 lakh MT is on under the Swachh Bharat Mission-2. The MC says 7.8 lakh MT of it has been processed. The MC has set up a segregation plant and now no fresh waste is being dumped.

Government Health Education Centre: A pilot project of the centre will be launched at Government Model High School, Sector 22, Chandigarh, in February. To be set up by the UT administration in partnership with the Chandigarh Rotary Club to impart health education to students of city schools, the focus will be on general health, oral health, nutrition/physical activity, drug/alcohol/tobacco prevention, pregnancy/STI prevention, and social and emotional health. Rotary Club will provide exhibits, including holographic models and technologies, estimated to cost around 1 crore. The facility aims to impart health education to 1.5 lakh students every year initially. It will have six teaching rooms with a capacity of 75 students each and an auditorium with a capacity of 150 students.

Parking project at district courts: A multi-level parking complex will come up at the district courts complex in Sector 43 in March 2025. Being built at a cost of 81 crore on a 4.5-acre plot, the five-level parking will accommodate nearly 2,000 cars. The four-storeyed district court complex has 31 courtrooms. At present, vehicles are parked along the road around the court complex. In November 2023, lawyers went on strike when police started issuing challans for vehicles parked along the road. Later, some areas were earmarked for parking on the roadside to avoid confrontation. There are nearly 3,000 advocates practising in the Chandigarh district courts.

Trauma centre at GMCH: The new emergency-cum-trauma centre at Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), Sector 32, will be ready by April 2025. Approved in 2019, the construction of the 259-bed centre has run into one hurdle after the other. Punjab governor Gulab Chand Kataria instructed engineering wing officials to ensure that emergency services in the new facility begin by April. The present emergency block, equipped with 45 beds, sees a daily influx of nearly 400 patients. Amid the rush, patients are examined on stretchers and trolleys. The emergency block is designed to incorporate laboratories, along with X-ray, CT scan and MRI facilities. Besides, it will house a pharmacy, two emergency operating theatres, post-operative wards, an isolation ward, and parking in the basements accommodating 59 four-wheelers and 144 two-wheelers.

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