The Municipal Corporation House on Tuesday collectively decided to not approve the agenda of installing electric vehicle (EV) charging stations in the parking sites of the civic body until a committee comprising three councillors and a representative of Chandigarh Renewable Energy and Science & Technology (CREST) not visit the proposed sites and take feedback from all stakeholders.
Mayor Anup Gupta also said in the meeting that councillors will sit on a protest outside the UT Secretariat against the administration’s move to identify the sites without taking the House in its confidence. The councillors’ protest will be held outside the UT Secretariat at 11 am on Wednesday.
The development came in the backdrop of a letter from the office of the secretary, local government, UT administration that the MC should take the decision on the issue within 10 days and if it failed then action in exercise of the provision under Section 406 of the Punjab Municipal Corporation Act, 1976 will be initiated by the Chandigarh Administration.
MC Commissioner Anindita Mitra said if the House doesn’t take any decision, the administration reserved its right to claim the 32 identified sites on its own under Section 406 of the Punjab Municipal Corporation Act.
BJP councillor Saurabh Joshi, while speaking on the agenda, said that the Chandigarh Administration should take the councillors in confidence. “At the end of the day, it will be us to whom affected people come with their grievances,” AAP councillor Damanpreet Singh, who is also the leader of the Opposition said. He added that presently there is a need to increase the parking space in the market areas and with installing charging stations in the parking lots, the administration is reducing the space to park vehicles.
Congress councillor Gurpreet Singh Gabi said that the UT administration should install the charging stations on its own land, which is lying vacant and unattended.
Mayor Anup Gupta proposed the formation a three-member committee, which will visit all the identified sites take feedback from all the stakeholders and then come out with its recommendations. When he was told that the administration reserved the right to undertake these sites, he urged all the councillors to sit on a protest. Councillors of all the parties agreed with him.
The agenda of setting up of electric charging and battery swapping stations at 32 parking sites of MC had been already rejected in a House meeting held on July 25. “The House rejected the agenda till the time the electric vehicle policy is not discussed with the all elected as well as nominated councillors by the Chandigarh Administration,” the House had said.
