The Haryana government is set to transfer the administration of 11 sectors in Panchkula from the Haryana Shahari Vikas Pradhikaran (HSVP) to the Municipal Corporation (MC), Panchkula, in a move aimed at streamlining civic governance and improving public service delivery. It is anticipated that the proposal will result in removing the duplication of duties among various departments and ensuring one window for accountability.
As per the statements by the concerned authorities, this move is aimed at solving the persistent problem of jurisdiction in order to expedite the process of maintaining infrastructure such as roads, parks, drainage systems, street lights, and other civic amenities. The purpose behind including these sectors within the jurisdiction of the Municipal Corporation is to achieve greater coordination between departments.
As per Sham Lal Bansal, the mayor of Panchkula, Nayab Singh Saini has consented to the plan. With this system, all the important departments functioning within the municipal limit will function under the control of the Municipal Corporation, and thus, it would be easy for the people to visit any one department regarding their civic issues.
Traditionally, various sectors in Panchkula have had their maintenance work carried out by bodies like the Municipal Corporation, HSVP, Panchkula Metropolitan Development Authority (PMDA), and Irrigation Department. The problem with the fragmented system is that there has always been confusion as to which agency should be responsible for solving the local infrastructure problems.
According to the suggested plan, it can be said that the Municipality would adopt the responsibility of managing these civic facilities in these selected sectors in a gradual manner. It is anticipated that the sector number 5 would be one of those sectors where the administrative responsibilities would fall on the Municipality while the supply system for water would still lie with HSVP in some other sectors. The new structure will not only ensure accountability in the civic administration of the city but will also enable greater coordination among the departments. It is also believed that this approach will lead to the avoidance of overlapping of duties, coordination, faster infrastructural development in the municipal wards of Panchkula and quick redressal of grievances regarding various aspects of public utility services.
In addition to the modifications in the administration, some other ideas have been proposed in an effort to improve transparency and citizen participation. One such idea entails the holding of hearings on a weekly basis, wherein any complaints will be addressed along with progress reports about the civic and infrastructural projects undertaken by the municipal departments.
This initiative is yet to be cleared administratively. Once cleared, it will definitely rank among the most significant governance reform initiatives undertaken in recent times by Panchkula’s civic administration. The reason for the same lies in the fact that this will bring together many public services under one roof.
