Kharar MC gets approval for new office building

Gets nod after eight years, expected to begin by mid-November

The Kharar municipal council (MC) has got the government’s approval for setting up its new office building in Khanpur village after eight years.

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A department official, on the condition of anonymity, said, “The work is expected to begin by mid-November and for which the tenders will be floated soon.”

The official said the matter was earlier taken with the government in 2011 however it had been hanging fire since then. It was only after receiving a number of representations that the government has approved the project recently. He said the issue was also taken up in the house meetings a multiple times by the councillors.

 Facilities at the new office

As per the official, the new building will be constructed on one-acre of land near the MC’s community centre in Khanpur at an estimated cost of ₹7 crore. It will be three-storeyed and have various facilities such as Sewa Kendra, lift system, parking facility in the basement and solar energy.

Owing to the space crunch in the present building, the need to set up a new building was felt, the official said. “There is a lack of space for parking of vehicles in the office. Only 20 vehicles can be parked in the premises at a time and the rest have to be parked on the roadside,” he said. However, the new office building will have the best facilities and around 100 vehicles will be parked in the basement of the building, he added.

The MC office was inaugurated by the then secretary of local government department, Punjab, Joginder Singh, in 1979. Built on a half acre of land, the office has been handled by as many as 28 executive officers till date.

‘Long-pending demand fulfilled’

MC sub-divisional officer (SDO) Harpreet Singh said a long-pending demand had been fulfilled by the government. “We are looking forward to shifting to the new building at the earliest,” he added.

Residents expressed their happiness over the decision of the government. “Earlier, it was very tough to park our vehicles in the MC office and at times, we preferred to go on foot as the parking slot was always packed with cars,” said Beopar Mandal president Ashok Sharma.

Parminder Singh, president of Prime City resident welfare association (RWA) said the office was not situated at the right spot. “One has to park its vehicle on the roadside to enter the building,” he said, adding, “the office building is also in dilapidated condition and may collapse anytime.”