Journalism of Courage
THE Chandigarh administration will not reroute National Highway-21, dashing the hopes of several hotel owners in sectors 35 and 43 and on Dakshin Marg. Talking to Chandigarh Newsline, chief engineer Mukesh Anand said, “No rerouting will be done. Regarding the RTI which the hoteliers were talking about, we have already got it clarified by the NHAI and the official concerned said the route was given inadvertently and they have mentioned that for any route within Chandigarh, the applicants need to contact the UT administration only. Our route is already specified.”
After hotel owners met MP Kirron Kher and showed that the route mentioned by NHAI and UT on NH-21 was different, Kher had written to UT Adviser Parimal Rai last month, requesting him to direct the authorities concerned “to take immediate necessary action to resolve this issue without further loss of time”. She stated that a clarification must be issued as the route mentioned by the UT engineering wing and the NHAI, as per RTI details, were different.
National Highways Authority of India Project Director O C Mathur said, “We are not responsible for any route within the UT but routes outside UT.” While the Chandigarh Administration had earmarked the route via Junction 38 (Tribune Chowk), (Hotel JW Marriott Chowk, touching Vikas Marg up to Sector 39 Chowk) as National Highway 21 (New NH-205) and also specified that no heavy vehicular traffic was allowed on the route from 6 am to 11 pm, information sought through NH by the hoteliers said NH -21 is routed through Junction 38 (Tribune Chowk), (Mohali Checkpost) to (Sector 39 Chowk).
Kher had stated in her letter that there is confusion due to the contradiction of routes earmarked by the Chandigarh Administration and the National Highways Authority of India. As a result, hotel and restaurant business was badly affected as they were not being allowed to serve liquor following the judgment delivered by the Supreme Court.
These outlets come under the purview of the Supreme Court order that has banned the sale of liquor within 500 metres of national and state highways. With this, around 42 hotels, which have bars, will lose hope of getting their bars operational again. Arvinder Pal Singh, president of the Hotel and Restaurant Association, said, “The NH has given a map to us on which the route is mentioned. How can they sit on it.”
