Move to allot 4 parking sites to contractor raises questions

Ludhiana: Residents who are already unhappy with introduction of hourly parking in MC parking lots have questioned the allotment process and allocation of all four prime locations to a single contractor.
City residents also demanded a permanent solution to the problem of overcharging, especially since they would be expected to pay more to park their vehicles for a longer duration. On their part, officials claimed that the process was transparent and they had followed the norms.
The MC auctioned four sites, including Feroze Gandhi Market, multi-storey parking, Sarabha Nagar market and Bhadhaur House to a single contractor, against whom many complaints poured in when he had the parking sites two years back.
A resident of Civil Lines, Hemant Kapoor said, “If officials are aware of one contractor and his habit of troubling commuters, then why have they given the contract to him? If they have done so, then it should be guaranteed that there will be no overcharging.”
Ghumar Mandi resident Mahinder Singh said, “We do not have any authorised parking here in the market so sometimes, people park their vehicles in Feroze Gandhi market. They complain about staff misbehaving and overcharging.” He said that rules should be implemented strictly to prevent public harassment.
MC superintendent Harvinder Dhalla assured that things would be different this time. “This time, we will ensure that there is proper e ticketing and overcharging is strictly banned, failing which the agreement will be cancelled.” He maintained that they auctioned parking lots in a proper manner and allotment was finalised after due approval from members of F&CC.
Contractors are supposed to fulfill a few conditions in one week, including installation of CCTV cameras at entry and exit points of the parking site, provision of uniform for employees at parking sites, use of FINLO mobile application to generate e-tickets, separate parking space for women and specially-abled persons etc.