Parking project in Palampur in darkness

A multi-storey parking project in the city has been hanging fire for the past 14 years. The local Municipal Corporation had transferred eight kanals to the state Urban Development Department for the project in 2009. However, the land, which has a market value of over Rs 40 crore at present, is still lying unused.

Former Chief Ministers Prem Kumar Dhumal and Virbhadra Singh had laid the foundation stone of the project twice on June 8, 2008, and in 2014, respectively. The state government had announced the construction of the parking on the public-private partnership (PPP) mode but the project failed to take off.

Information gathered by The Tribune reveals that the project was allotted to a Gurugram-based builder and an MoU was also signed with it but in the past 12 years, no work had been done. In 2021, the government had rescinded the project and assured the residents of Palampur that the parking would be constructed with financial assistance from Asian Development Bank (ADB). However, in the past two years, no headway has been made as the ADB has not shown any interest in the project. Meanwhile, traffic congestion in the city has worsened in the past two years.

Trilok Kapoor, a senior BJP leader, said that the previous BJP government had rescinded the MoU and even the Himachal High Court had dismissed the builder’s appeal. Therefore, the Congress government should start the construction work on the project and stop discrimination against Palampur.

There has been a manifold increase in the number of vehicles in Palampur. Over 6,000 to 8,000 vehicles are added to the city and its adjoining areas every month. However, the parking space is getting squeezed further, causing inconvenience to people. At present, there is a provision of parking for 100 vehicles. Residents, students, businessmen and tourists have no alternative but to park their vehicles in no-parking zones