Khanna: As the election commission has announced the date for the civic body elections, sewerage and bad roads are going to be the main issues among the voters here. Khanna is a major municipal council of Ludhiana district, which has the highest number of 33 wards which will go to polls on February 14.
Many residents here expressed their displeasure about the roads, which they say are not in good shape.
“The major link roads like Lalheri road, Amloh road and Samrala road are in a bad shape. Amloh road has been dug up because of which there are traffic jams in the area as it is closed from GT road service lane side, whereas Samrala road has big potholes and Lalheri road also has similar issues. Even inside the city, the roads are not in satisfactory condition and are dug up in many wards for laying of sewerage. So, definitely roads are going to be a big issue in the coming elections as Khanna residents deserve better roads,” said Gurpreet Singh, a local resident. “Besides the not so good roads, there are encroachments on major roads, including service lane of GT road, that causes traffic problems and also road accidents.”
The sewerage problem is also among the main issues for residents even as the new sewerage is being laid in the town.
“Work on the laying of sewerage has been going on for the last nine to ten months, and because of lack of planning we are suffering. One has to understand that we cannot break a system without developing a new one and providing an alternate system is a must before carrying out new work, especially in case of sewerage. Though the main line has been laid in most wards of trans-railway areas or east Khanna, in six to seven wards, including mine, lines from streets not connected with it. So, it results in water-logging even when it rains a bit. In monsoon, the problem gets worse as streets remain water-logged.” Tarsem Bahia, patron, Environmental Protection Welfare Society, and a resident of Guru Tegh Bahadur Nagar in ward number 6, said.
He added that, “Though they have sweepers and tankers to drain out dirty water, they are not doing their work as they feel that now the sewerage has been laid even as they are charging money from the agency concerned. As water-logging is there, it results in unhygienic surroundings, which does result in mosquito related diseases and water-borne diseases.”
Even as as per the local civic body authorities, the sewerage has been laid in 80% of the MC wards in Khanna, but there are councillors from certain wards who cry foul over the alleged bias by the ruling party.
“In some wards, particularly those where opposition party councillors are there, they didn’t get sewerage laid and at some areas where they have laid the main line, it is just 1.5 to 2.5 feet wide, which doesn’t work and remains jammed. In smaller streets there is no sewerage and as a result water gets accumulated on vacant plots and there are ponds everywhere. In monsoon, all streets gets submerged under water and in normal days also we have to use many vehicles to get water pumped out from the area,” said Sudhir Sonu, BJP councillor from ward number 14.
“Since I am from the opposition party, they discriminate with me. In ward number 13 as well, which is represented by SAD, the problem is there and they have laid just around 100m of sewerage in ward number 12. In wards where sewerage has been laid under Amrut scheme, roads are in bad condition as these have been dug up.”
As the roads and sewerage system are a major issues in Khanna civic body elections, former MC president and Congress leader Vikas Mehta said that roads were being constructed and the sewerage system was being completed.
“So far as link roads are concerned, tiles are being laid on the Amloh road, whereas we have prepared an estimate for Samrala road and also we have kept Rs 90 lakh for Lalheri road. The condition of roads in the city is good. As far as the sewerage is concerned, 80% of the work has been done and it will be completed by March 31,” said Mehta, . He indicated that it does feel bad that water was accumulated in certain areas.
Reacting to allegation of BJP councillor on discrimination with opposition parties’ councillors, former MC president said that as the work was inter-linked so the ground reality was different. He added that in those areas, a mini solid treatment plant (STP) was being constructed and a special tender had been floated for the same, so work had not been carried out in a proper way there.