MC Commissioner GK Singh shifted

Charanjit Singh Teja 

Tribune News Service 

Ludhiana, April 13

Municipal Commissioner GK Singh Dhaliwal was transferred today. He will join as Joint Development Commissioner in the Rural Development Department as well as Commissioner, Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) scheme, at Chandigarh.

Additional Municipal Commissioner Ghanshyam Thori has been given officiating charge of Municipal Commissioner. 

Dhaliwal joined as Municipal Commissioner, Ludhiana, in December 2014. During his tenure of 16 months, he had made several achievements, the major being the city figured in the first 20 cities for the Smart City project of the Central Government.

 He made extraordinary efforts to promote book culture in the city. A major public library was established at Guru Nanak Bhawan. He made the provision for permanent budget for libraries.

Being a student of literature and regular columnist, Dhaliwal worked for cultivating habit of book reading among residents to make them good civilians. He initiated awareness campaigns on several civics issues.    

Apart from this, Dhaliwal also redeveloped two major gardens, Rakh Bagh and Rose Garden. He went to Rakh Bagh for a walk daily and listened to residents’ grievances there.  

According to Dhaliwal, it was his first experience to head a civic body and he took it as a challenge. 

“It was the toughest task for me. Here, we have to deal with elected representatives as well as public. The challenge of urbanisation was very crucial.  We have to sit together and plan. Our elected representatives raise their voice only for their interests. No one thinks about the city as a whole,” he said.  

He expressed his dissatisfaction over the sanitation work. “Though we have  made it to the list of clean cities under the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, from the 381st rank to the 34th rank, collection of garbage from the city left much to be desired.  I wanted to commission a garbage-processing plant,” said GK Singh. He thanked the residents for cooperating with the civic body in the Smart City campaign.

Meanwhile, despite taking action against some parking contractors, Dhaliwal failed to curb overcharging at MC parking contractors. The MC did not make any major effort against encroachments in the city during his tenure. 

“I used to write columns for newspapers, but while working in Ludhiana, I did not contribute anything as the job was too hectic,” said Dhaliwal.