The Municipal Corporation officials have finalised the agenda to clear development works worth Rs 52 crore in the Finance and Contracts Committee meeting to be held tomorrow.
A controversy has erupted over the agenda, with allegations that Mayor Vaneet Dhir, who also serves as the Aam Aadmi Party's Jalandhar North halqa in-charge, has allocated development works worth Rs 24 crore to his own constituency.
It has been suggested that Rs 8 crore will be spent on the cleaning and repair of sewage lines, while the remaining funds will be used for road relaying, parks and streetlight works.
Among the Assembly segments, Jalandhar Cantonment has been allocated Rs 19 crore, followed by Jalandhar West with Rs 5.64 crore. Jalandhar Central has obtained the lowest allocation at Rs 3.5 crore.
Residents in several localities of Jalandhar North continue to grapple with frequent sewer choking difficulties. The hit zones include Kalia Colony, the Gauri Shankar Mandir area, Sabzi Mandi, Reru Chowk, Vivek Vihar, Barkat Nagar, Green Valley, the Sheetla Mata Mandir area, Industrial Estate, Dada Colony, the Doaba Chowk region, Sodal railway crossing, Bhagat Singh Colony, New Nagra Colony, the Lamma Pind Chowk area and Santokhpura.
The approvals for various other works, including maintenance of 179 tubewells for Rs 65 lakh, installation of LED lights in 11 colonies and sterilisation of stray dogs, are also likely to be granted in tomorrow's meeting. The meeting is vital as it comes just two months ahead of the Assembly elections.
Jasleen Sethi, Congress MC Councillor, stated, "The allocation of funds is completely unfair. Mayor Dhir should remember that he is the Mayor of entire city and not just of Jalandhar North. He should ensure a fair distribution of funds for all four urban constituencies without showing any personal preferences." Vaneet Dhir has not responded to the controversy so far.
