Ward 34 polls: Waterlogging, pending MCG takeover and civic issues take centre stage

Residents of MCG’s Ward 34, who are set to elect their councillor next month, said that civic issues, pending transfer of two townships, waterlogging, poor condition of amenities are the issues that the next office-bearer must resolve on priority

Residents of Municipal Corporation of Gurugram’s (MCG) Ward 34, who are set to elect their councillor next month, said that civic issues, pending transfer of two townships, waterlogging, poor condition of amenities are the issues that the next office-bearer must resolve on priority.

Polls in Ward 34 of MCG are scheduled for October 3, with residents voicing their concerns on waterlogging and takeover of colonies, among others. (HT Archive)

Members of residents’ welfare associations said that while major issues regarding the ward were addressed over the past four years, a few more issues were in the process of being addressed before the demise of the incumbent.

Delay in the takeover of colonies by the MCG was a major concern, residents said.

“The MCG takeover of the two colonies was announced way back in 2016. Five other colonies, four of which were added in 2017, were transferred to the MCG in 2019. However, the transfer of DLF Phases 1 and 2 is still pending. We want the new councillor to expedite the process as we also want to avail of optimum civic services offered by the MCG,” Gaurav Singh, a resident of DLF Phase 1, said.

Dhruv Bansal, the spokesperson for DLF Qutub Enclave RWA, which looks after DLF Phase-1, said, “We want the new councillor to be well versed with localised issues and be approachable. He or she needs to expedite the ongoing transfer of DLF Phases 1 and 2 from the developer to the MCG, which the former councillor had also been regularly taking up with the authorities concerned,” said Bansal.

The polls to elect the MCG Ward 34 councillor will be held on October 3. The post has been vacant since May 30 following the death of the incumbent, RS Rathee, an independent candidate, due to Covid-19.

The ward includes upscale areas of DLF Phases 1 and 2 townships, Silver Oaks Apartment in DLF Phase-1, Oakwood Estate in DLF Phase-2; Beverly Park 1 and 2, Heritage City and Essel Towers on the Mall Mile; Belvedere Towers in Cyber City; The Ivy apartments in Sector 28 and The Magnolias in Sector 42.

During the 2017 MCG elections, the ward had 23,402 eligible voters. According to MCG officials, the ward now has around 29,000 eligible voters, with a total population of 100,000-125,000.

In February 2016, the Haryana government had announced the transfer of maintenance of DLF Phases 1 and 2 from the developer to the MCG. Five years later, the transfer is still pending as the developer opted to fix the deficiencies instead of paying monetary compensation.

Naveen Kumar, a member of DLF Phase-2 RWA, said that the erratic power supply is a major issue that has to be resolved on priority.

“Rathee addressed a large number of issues in the area and had just started working towards taking up the matter of power cuts and irregular power bills before his untimely demise. We want the councillor to take up this matter with the power distribution company and provide relief to thousands of residents,” he said.

Residents living along the Mall Mile said that localised waterlogging is a recurrent problem that needs to be fixed. Manish Sinha, a resident of Essel Towers in Sector 28 said that this monsoon, the entrance to the condominium was blocked due to heavy rainwater accumulation.

“Our condominium is at a disadvantage as it is located in a low-lying area and on a slope, compared to the main carriageway of the Mall Mile. Due to this, rainwater from nearby areas accumulates outside the colony gate. Residents cannot enter or exit the colony until the motor pumps drain out rainwater. I want the new councillor to take up this matter on priority and resolve it at the earliest,” said Sinha.

Residents in Cyber City pointed to the poor condition of service roads as their major concern. “The service road from Cyber City to MG Road is in pathetic condition, especially in the stretch falling opposite Sikanderpur village. It is pothole-ridden and needs immediate fixing, as it is accessed hundreds of commuters on a daily basis,” Swaroop Pillarisetti, a resident of Belvedere Towers, said.