For the residents of Sector 56, a small office-cum-sweeper’s room is all they have in the name of a community centre. It can barely accommodate four people; there is no space available for holding any kind of gathering. Area councillor Darshan Garg asserts that there is no community centre in the area that he has been serving for the last four years. “I have written many letters to the Municipal Corporation requesting for a community centre, but there has been no action. We have around 1.45 acres of land occupied by slum dwellers where the community centre can be built. UT Advisor had visited the area on September 7 to see how these dwellers can be rehabilitated and a community centre can be built,” he says. [related-post] This is not the only sector where the residents are facing this problem. There are community centres where even the basic amenities are not available. Washrooms, kitchens, doors and walls in most community centres are in urgent need of repair while the leaking roofs, unkempt lawns, 20-year-old furniture and torn curtains are the other common problems of the community centres. At a recent House meeting of the Municipal Corporation, councillors had mooted a proposal for reconstructing the community centres which are in a bad shape. Mayor Poonam Sharma had approved the reconstruction of community centre in Sector 37. Arun Sood, a councillor from the area of Sector 37, says, “Our sector is the second highly populated area in the city and despite that, we only have a community centre catering to 70 people. Our first proposal was to add other facilities but it was not approved. Now the second proposal is to make the building a duplex with a provision for gym, games, adequate parking and a seating capacity for 500 people. A budget of Rs 5 crore has been approved for the purpose.” Satish Kumar Kainth, a councillor from Sector 29 and Industrial Area Phase 1, says that for 28,000 voters residing in his area, there is only one community centre with a seating capacity for 70 people. “Our community centre lacks the basic facilities but the people who book it for some small functions have to pay the same amount which residents pay for a well-equipped centre. The roofs leak in the rainy season, washrooms are broken and kitchen does not have any facility. The centre is in a deplorable condition. It shows that MC follows a pick-and-choose policy, ignoring the need of slum areas.” In comparison to these community centres, however, the ones in sectors 22, 49 or 47 are fully equipped air-conditioned halls with a capacity for 300, a bride room, modular kitchen, office room, library with computer facility, musical gymnasium, badminton courts and table tennis room. In Sector 49 community centre, construction of a swimming pool is also under consideration. While some community centres in the city are well-equipped with a musical gymnasium, modular kitchen and a table tennis room, the majority of the centres lack even the basic amenities like adequate seating arrangement, proper washrooms, furniture, parking area and a lawn. Harpool Chander Kalyan, a councillor and former mayor, says, “Our community centre in Sector 49 is one of the best in the city since it offers all the required facilities, including a seating capacity for 500 guests, games and sports. Now a swimming pool is also under consideration. Another community centre in Sector 50 will be inaugurated by this month. Chief Architect has approved its plan and the project will cost Rs 7 crore; it will also cater to 500 guests.” The councillors say that keeping in view the needs of their wards’ residents, they have to spend from their own pockets some times. Naresh Kumar, a councillor from Sector 26 and Bapu Dham Colony, says that he has been spending himself on the construction and repair work at the community centre which has a seating capacity for 200 people. Similarly, councillor Jannat Jahan says that apart from AC, the community centre in her area has everything since she spent Rs 30 lakh on its improvement last year, providing the facility of games and new furniture.
