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Redefining
Chandigarh
The Union Territory of Chandigarh has a total area of 114 sq.
kms and has witnessed decennial population growth (1991-2001)
of 44.33% .
It
had a population of 9,00,914 in the last census. Chandigarh
is unique, because it is the capital of two state governments,
Punjab and Haryana. Chandigarh is a planned city, with a high
standard of civic amenities. Chandigarh's infrastructure was
originally planned for a population of 5 lakh, but the city
has expanded rapidly over the last three decades and faces problems
common to other growing cities in India, including the proliferation
of slums and squatter settlements. Despite these problems, Chandigarh
ranks first in India in the Human Development Index, quality
of life and e-readiness.
Keeping in view the need for the investment of investible
surplus, we have taken a number of major initiatives to upgrade
the infrastructure in Chandigarh, to boost economic growth
in the region. Chandigarh is emerging as a regional hub in
the areas of service industry, education, health, information
technology, food and vegetable processing etc. Chandigarh’s
plan priorities clearly focus on the targets and objectives
contained in the National Common Minimum Programme.
Chandigarh’s economy is changing in character as the
knowledge revolution sweeps the country. In the last decade,
the traditional industrial activity has not seen that rapid
an increase as was seen in the activities relating to the
services sector.
Right from the day the foundation of the city was laid in
1952, the Administration has been successful in transforming
this city into a world class city, which can be depicted by
the following Fact File:
- Number 1 in the country in terms of Human Development
Index
- Chandigarh has been rated as the “Wealthiest Town”
of India. In terms of family wealth, it was rated as the
sixth most prosperous city.
- Good Governance- A compact, efficient Administration having
Quick Decision making system
- Bank Deposits- USD 4 billion with 227 branches
- Education: Seat of the prestigious Panjab University from
where 145 Ph.D pass out in various disciplines, with Two
prestigious Engineering Colleges with 400 Engineers passing
out every year. PGI ME&R- Prestigious Medical Research
Institute of the country is situated in this city. Apart
from various Colleges in the Science, Commerce and Humanities
fields, One Architecture College and one College of Fine
Arts add to the high value education institutes in the city.
- Health: 5 Big Govt. Hospitals in the City; PGI, General
Multi-Speciality Hospital, Sector 16, General Medical College
& Hospital, Sector 32; One Hospital each in the field
of Homeopathy & Ayurveda. Apart from these, there are
various other Hospitals in the private sector.
- Research Institutes: IMTECH, CSIO, NIPER all add to the
value added Research facilities provided by the city.
- Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is growing @ 16.06% in the
year 2004-05 against all India Growth of 8.2%.
Description |
All India |
Chandigarh |
Punjab |
Haryana |
Density of Population-2001 Census (Km2) |
313 |
7900 |
484 |
478 |
Literacy Rate (%) |
64.8 |
81.9 |
69.7 |
67.9 |
Per Capita Income (Rs.) (At Current Prices) |
23241 |
67370
(Highest in All India) |
30701 |
32712 |
Bank branches/ 1000 persons |
- |
0.25 |
0.11 |
0.79 |
Credit-Deposit Ratio (%) |
- |
107 |
62.19 |
51.94 |
Per Capita Consumption of Electricity (2004)
(Kilowatt hours) |
79.00
(2002-03) |
853.34 |
902.76 |
902.76 |
Hospital Beds /10000 persons |
N.A. |
23 |
10 |
5 |
Birth Rate/1000 persons |
25.00
(2002) |
21.45
(2005) |
20.6
(2003) |
26.3
(2003) |
Infant Mortality Rate/ 1000 live births |
63.00 |
44.13 |
49.00 |
59.00 |
INITIATIVES OF CHANDIGARH ADMINISTRATION
Changing Employment Patterns
RGCTP has been conceived with an idea of creating
employment and it is expected that once RGCTP is completed
more than 25000 professionals would be working here. Already
4500 professionals are working in RGCTP at present. As a natural corollary
to creation of a single job in the IT sector, 3 other indirect
jobs per one job in IT sector are created and as such 15000
jobs were created indirectly.
Providing Essential Public Services to
the Poor
Education
Under Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan 10,400 children have been enrolled
and the ambit of SSA is spreading its wings to cover all the
out of school children/ drop-outs by the end of this financial
year. To accomplish this task a house-hold survey has been
inititated which will detect the out of school children. To
encourage literacy amongst the illiterate adults, different
schemes in collaboration with Govt. of India are being launched
every year. Literacy centers are being opened in all the nook
and corner of the city so that every adult can be educated
and provided basic minimum educational qualification.
Health
Care
- General Hospital Sector 16 has been upgraded to General
Multi Speciality Hospital, so as to provide quality health
care to the underprivileged.
- General Medical College & Hospital Sector 32 and General
Multi Speciality Hospital Sector 16 would be looking after
the primary and secondary health care needs.
- PGI ME&R would be upgraded to a world class Referral
Hospital, where only complicated medical cases would be
referred from the Region.
- A Complete study of the integration of the Health Care
systems has been made by Director, PGI ME&R and the
same has been sent to Government of India.
- This study has also identified the need for another Medical
Education Centre, and a project for Rs 240 Cr has been prepared
which will be implemented under the PPP model.
- A massive drive has been started to ensure that all children
are given the benefit of our medical system and this drive
will cover 1.5 lakh children.
- To tackle the problem of malnutrition, the whole mid-day
meal scheme has been revamped, starting with Non recognized
schools with 50000 students and gradually this scheme will
be extended to the 104 Government schools as well.. The
daily expenditure per child is Rs. 7 out of which the GOI
subsidy component is Rs. 1.50. Some of our Institutes and
Corporations have been given this responsibility of partially
funding this endeavor.
- Tele-medicine project has been undertaken so as to integrate
the IT services with the medical services.
Increasing Manufacturing Competitiveness
Roads
- As a Long term measure, Chandigarh Administration has
initiated the conversion of all bitumen roads into RCC roads.
We are also using plastic waste in road construction and
propose to rehabilitate our rag pickers in a planned colony.
The Engineering Department will purchase plastic waste from
the rag pickers and use in the construction of roads.
Power
- Long term tie ups have been made with all the Power Corporations,
so as to ensure uninterrupted power supply to the City.
- Talks are going on with GAIL for a dedicated gas pipeline
to the city for setting up of 250 MW Power plant.
- In touch with foreign companies for harnessing the Solar
energy, which will include setting up a plant for manufacture
of Solar Photovoltaic Cells.
- Power T & D losses have been brought down from 24%
to 19%, which will be further brought down to 16%.
Rajiv Gandhi Chandigarh Technology Park
- The Phase I of the RGCTP has been fully developed and
it has been accorded the SEZ status. The same has been anchored
by Infosys with a state of the art building ready for occupation.
15 other BTS sites have been allotted to prominent IT companies.
- A state of the art Entrepreneurs Development Centre is
coming up on a 1.5 acre plot at a cost of Rs 16 Cr, which
will have plug n play facilities for upcoming entrepreneurs.
- The Phase II of the RGCTP is under development and has
also been accorded SEZ status by GOI. Wipro is the anchor
company for Phase II, and Tech Mahindra, Bharti and eSys
are the co-anchors.
- DLF Info city has built up a state of art building on
12.5 acres plot having a covered area of 6,00,000 sq. ft
for the use of IT companies. Big names like IBM Daksh, Infosys,
Tech Mahindra, eSys , Net Solutions, Virsa Systems, etc
have already starting functioning from this Centre.
- Keeping in view the demand for more IT space Phase - III
of RGCTP has been planned for which 270 Acres of land is
to be acquired. The acquisition process has already begun.
- Till now Rs. 700 Cr has already been invested in RGCTP.
Once completed, the RGCTP will bring in an investment of
Rs. 5000 crores, apart from bringing in 25000 IT professionals.
Developing Human Resources
- A new state of the art Education City is coming up, which
will have world class educational faculty and excellent
infrastructure.
- PEC-Punjab Engineering College which is an autonomous
deemed University will be soon upgraded to IIT status, enabling
delivery of more value added education.
- Setting up a IIM level Management Institute and a branch
of the National Institute of Design
- Partnership with Private Sector for providing IT education
to young students. Infosys has already launched the programme
”Catch Them Young” whereby entrance test is
conducted in all the schools of the city and the students
selected are given free of cost inhouse training in Infosys.
Intel Learn is providing IT education to teachers of the
Govt schools, who will inturn provide IT education in the
rural areas. The Administration is also in the process of
upgrading select Government schools as Smart Schools, where
IT programmes would be launched for the betterment of the
school going children.
- C-TOSS, a programme for upgrading the soft skills, for
urban and rural areas enhancing employability of students
under PPP model.
Protecting
the Environment
- Botanical Garden has been developed on 178 acres in village
Sarangpur, which will consist of 15 botanical sections and
other features to promote eco tourism.
- 3 Lakes, two along Patiala ki Rao and 1 along Sukhna Choe
are being undertaken , as a part of environmental related
initiatives.
- A Project for augmentation of the Water Supply has been
prepared and sent to GOI under JNNURM for approval. This
will go a long way in contributing towards Rain water Harvesting,
Ground Water Charging and also reducing our dependence on
pumping out Ground water.
- Tertiary Water treatment plan is also under implementation
which will cater to the needs of supporting 2000 parks/gardens
in the city.
Improving Rehabilitation and Resettlement
Practices
- To ensure harmonization between the old and new, we have
activated the Chandigarh Perspective which has representatives
of all professional and social sectors and includes members
of Le Corbusier’s initial team of eminent architects.
- Comprehensive Plans are in various stages of implementation
in the field of Housing especially to cater to the needs
of the incoming IT professionals.
- FAR has been standardized across the city.
- Self Certification of Building Plans by registered Architects.
- Promulgation of suitably modified building byelaws which
have redressed long standing demand of majority of people.
These byelaws also cover the conversion of Industrial Areas
into Commercial Areas so that it can be upgraded to the
same level as the new construction and this has had a very
good response.
- Rehabilitation of slum dwellers is being undertaken in
a massive way, which involves construction of 18000 flats
for which a complete new model has been worked out. Past
experience has been that the slum dwellers had to take loans
from the unorganized sector, who got into benami transactions,
resulting in the flats going into wrong hands. Under the
new model, the slum dwellers would be allotted flats on
rent basis which shall be non-transferable. This project
will also include a home for rehabilitation of 1000 destitute
children. We are also creating facilities for 1000 mentally
retarded children and 1000 crippled children, both of which
will have a percentage of vacancies for adults and destitute.
- Upgradation of Rehabilitation Colonies is proposed to
be launched in a big way.
Improving Governance
Participation of Citizens in Decision Making
Chandigarh Administration has instituted a consultative process
as broad based as possible involving people with varied expertise
and experience in specialized subjects in public affairs so
that aspirations of all sections of the society are reflected
in governmental decisions. This initiative has successfully
given a sense of participation to citizens in decision making
processes making them seamless and transparent. Such initiatives
include constitution of Administrator’s Advisory Council
including its sub groups on various issues of public concern,
Chandigarh Perspective and Environmental Committee on Preservation
of Ecology of Sukhna Lake.
o The burning issue of tackling corruption, needs our concentration.
There needs to be a wide spread campaign, at the National
and State levels with important functionaries of the Government
at all levels introducing citizens charters and the Right
to Information, which should be widely publicized to increase
awareness amongst the public so that the general public is
not forced to succumb to corrupt officials. Concrete steps,
like deterrent, punishment, as also incentives for honest
officials, would also be effective. The issue needs to be
taken up at the national level, so that there is a concerted
effort among all levels of Government to rid the system of
corrupt officials in particular and corruption as a whole.
The Chandigarh Administration has incorporated all these measures
to ensure a transparent, responsive and completely accountable
Government.
Regaining Agricultural Dynamism
To support the crop diversification programme undertaken
by both Punjab & Haryana, we are in the final stages of
setting up of Terminal Market for Fruit & Vegetables for
which preliminary discussions have been held with the GOI.
The Administration is also putting together a Milk Village
so that all UT Villages are cleaned up. A modern dairy system
for Chandigarh villages is being introduced. Expressions of
Interest are being invited for setting up a high value product
Milk Processing Plant.
Disparities and Divides
Chandigarh’s plan priorities clearly focus on the target
and objectives contained in the National Common Minimum Programme.
We are aiming at three areas i.e. Human Development, Infrastructure,
and Environment Upgradation and Protection. Despite facing
many challenges, the Chandigarh Administration is constantly
working towards improving the quality of life of the residents
and preserving the unique character of the city of Chandigarh.
Development Infrastructure
- Upgradation of Chandigarh Airport to international standards
is under implementation with the first step of transfer
of 8.5 acres land to the AAI. Chandigarh Administration
will be allotting equal area to Air Force and Army in lieu
of this land. This will augment the physical connectivity
of Chandigarh to the world and fulfill a long term need
and considerably enhance export potential of this Region.
- As a Long term measure, Chandigarh Administration has
initiated the conversion of all bitumen roads into RCC roads.
- Nehru Centre for Performing Arts is being set up in Sector
34, Chandigarh which will also have the facility of an international
convention centre and theatres.
- Rejuvenation of the City Centre, Sector 17 is being undertaken
by provision of multi level parking, relaying of the floors
of main plaza, provisioning of tourist information centres
etc.
- Completion of Sub City Centre in Sector 34 will further
boost the commercial activity of the city.
- Botanical Garden is being developed on 178 acres in village
Sarangpur, which will consist of 15 botanical sections and
other features to promote eco tourism.
- 3 Lakes, two along Patiala ki Rao and 1 along Sukhna Choe
are being undertaken , as a part of environmental related
initiatives.
- Second State Library is being completed in Sector 34.
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