Banking on Brand Modi, twice-elected Panchkula BJP MLA Gian Chand Gupta, 76, who is also the Speaker in the assembly, is hopeful of a hat-trick with his ‘10 saal bemisal’ list of achievements even though his ‘seven areas of concern or sarokar’ are yet to be addressed as Haryana heads for elections on October 5.

Gupta, who has got the party ticket to contest for the third time, counts on the development works initiated during his decade-long tenure to counter anti-incumbency, while his opponents are quick to highlight his unfulfilled promises, including a stray cattle-free and clean and green Panchkula.

“This city was in neglect under the Congress government. In the past 10 years, I have strived to develop it as an educational hub and initiated projects worth ₹5,000 crore, including the setting up of the industrial training institute and multi-skill centre. Besides the construction of the rail overbridge in Sector 19, the four-laning of the Panchkula-Yamunanagar highway and civil hospital upgrade were also carried out,” says Gupta.

In January, former chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar had laid the foundation stone of a medical college and hospital to be built on 30 acres in Sector 32, Panchkula. It was to have 100 MBBS seats to begin with and was to be constructed by the Haryana Shehri Vikas Pradhikaran (HSVP) within 30 months. However, no action has been taken on the ground since then.

Though his winning margin had shrunk in 2019, Gupta has embarked on an outreach exercise, distributing sweets to academic and sports achievers in his constituency, as he gears up for a third shot at power. As MLA, he held regular janata darbars, allowing citizens to directly present their issues to him and took regular meetings of officials while personally supervising development works.

Residents of sectors across the Ghaggar river have been demanding that the garbage dumping ground be shifted from Jhuriwala and Sector 23, highlighting how the promise of setting up a solid waste management plant for the town is yet to be fulfilled. The residents recently held a protest by dumping garbage outside the municipal corporation (MC) office.

Panchkula generates 200MT of garbage daily but in the absence of a processing facility, the MC has been transporting waste to Patvi in Ambala since 2023. In the absence of the facility, the town slipped from the 86th rank in 2022 to the 139th position among 446 cities with a population above 1 lakh in the 2023 Swachh Survekshan rankings.

“The Jhuriwala dumping ground reflects mismanagement during the BJP MLA’s tenure. Maintenance is inadequate. Residents looking for a clean city with good roads, clean air, water and safety from stray animals are disappointed,” says Mohit Gupta, the co-founder of citizen initiative, Save River Ghaggar.

Nitesh Mittal, the convener of the Sangram Jhuriwala Dumping Ground Committee, Panchkula, says, “Instead of shifting the dumping ground, the MC has made Jhuriwala a material recovery facility (MRF) site for the entire city. They have failed to find an alternative site. The MC proposal to create 6 MRF sites in 2023 remains stuck in bureaucratic processes.”

Residents are up in arms against improper approval of stilt plus 4 buildings in residential areas. Yashveer Malik, the president of the Haryana State HUDA Sector Confederation, says, “Despite opposition, the construction of stilt plus 4 buildings is being forced on people despite inadequate infrastructure. The government has granted approval to benefit builders.”

Lack of parking space, particularly for visitors at government offices in Sectors 1 and 6 and district courts, needs to be addressed.

Though parking space has been provided at the Judicial Court Complex in Sector 1, but it is inadequate as it can accommodate 250-300 vehicles, including two-wheelers.

Roads in the township, particularly those in the industrial area, are full of potholes and patch work comes off every monsoon. Industrial area phases 1 and 2 are struggling to get the required infrastructure to promote industry.