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Gagan K Teja
Tribune News Service
Patiala, December 24
Traffic bottlenecks, potholed roads and poor sanitation are only some of the problems faced by Patran residents. The roads need urgent repair and a sewage treatment plant (STP) needs to be set up in the town. Residents have been demanding the STP for years. With the old sewerage lines choked, the threat of vector-borne diseases looms large in the rainy season.
Commuters face a lot of harassment due to traffic bottlenecks and non-functional traffic lights in the town. The town urgently needs a proper traffic plan since the number of vehicles has grown immensely. There are no parking spaces in the markets.
Funds
The municipal council (MC) has a budget of only Rs 5.84 crore out of which Rs 2.35 crore is allocated for salaries. The MC has earmarked Rs 60 lakh to pay power bills, Rs 24 lakh for streetlights, Rs 50 lakh for sewerage maintenance and Rs 40 lakh to handle any emergency. The main sources of income are property tax, sale of property, regularisation of houses and VAT.
Infrastructure
The 25-bed community health centre in the town does not have adequate capacity. It lacks proper facilities and therefore serious cases are either referred to Samana or Patiala.
There are six government schools and 26 aided and private schools with a total strength of 11,500 students. Residents say more government schools need to be built in the area.
Political landscape
The municipal council elections in Patran will be interesting as four presidents were appointed in the council in the last term. The 2008 elections had sprung many surprises. Even though the Congress had won from 11 of the 15 wards, the SAD-BJP took control of the House with Vinod Jindal being the president.
However, Congress candidate Rajkumar Singla went to the Punjab and Haryana High Court. He won the case and became the president. He later resigned from the post allegedly under pressure from SAD-BJP leadership. Thereafter, Jasvir Kaur Sidhu and Vinod Jindal of the SAD-BJP served as president for a year each.
At present, Patran is considered to be a Congress stronghold, but the Congress workers fear the Akalis would muscle their way to take control of the House.
Unkept promises
The town is yet to get a water treatment plant even though Deputy CM Sukhbir Badal had laid the stone of the plant
The Patran grain market is very small and cannot accommodate the produce during lifting seasons
The government had promised to expand the market, but the project has stalled allegedly due to differences among the local SAD leaders
Population
Population as of now: 30,000 (roughly) Population in 2011: 27,964
Population in 2001: 21,270
Population in 1991: 14,349
MC details
Number of wards: 15
Number of voters: 16,347
Male voters: 8,471
Female voters: 7,876
Educational institutions
Number of govt schools: 6
Private and aided schools: 26
Number of students: 11,494
Health Institutions
Community Health Centre
Annual intake of indoor patients: 1,697
Annual intake of outdoor patients: 38,479
Infant mortality rate: 31
Gender ratio: 863/1,000
Population with access to drinking water: 90 per cent
Population with access to sewerage: 85 per cent
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