Fare of Chandigarh-Shimla heli-taxi hiked
From July 1, the passengers of the Chandigarh-Shimla heli-taxi will now have to shell out Rs 500 more with the new rate fixed at Rs 3,499. The service will be available thrice a week (Monday, Wednesday and Friday) instead of twice a week. The helicopters will be landing at Annandale ground in Shimla. The service has received a great response with all seats being booked for June. Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur had inaugurated the heli-taxi service on June 4 from Shimla. It was introduced to encourage air tourism in North India.
Dengue, malaria and chikungunya on decline
As per the National Health Profile-2018, prepared by the Central Bureau of Health Intelligence, the number of dengue, malaria and chikungunya cases in Chandigarh were on decline in 2017 as compared to last few years. Last year, the number of malaria cases (provisional) reported in Chandigarh was 114. In 2016 and 2015, the number of cases was 157 and 152, respectively. No malaria death was reported in 2017 and 2016. In 2015, there was one death. In 2014, the total positive cases were 114 with no casualty. There were 1,652 clinically suspected chikungunya cases in 2017 and 2,857 in 2016. In 2017, the number of dengue cases recorded in Chandigarh was 1,094 and it was 1,246 in 2016.
MC proposes single bill for water, power, property tax
If all goes well, there will be a single bill for water and electricity charges along with property tax for Chandigarh residents as the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation has floated this idea. The proposal will come up for discussion during the House meeting on June 29. At present, there are separate bills for water and electricity connections. If the proposal is approved by the House, then it will be forwarded to the Chandigarh Administration, which will then finally put its final decision and also chalk out a plan for coordination with the Corporation. This is being done to bail the Corporation from its current financial crisis.
Civic body proposes hike in water tariff
The Chandigarh Municipal Corporation has proposed to double the water tariff. It will come up at the next general house meeting of the Corporation if it is approved by the Finance and Contract Committee (F&CC) at its meeting scheduled for June 26. It is after a gap of 10 years that a water tariff hike has been proposed. Water tariff hike is being proposed for all categories of consumers — domestic, institutional, commercial and industrial. The new proposed tariff is up from Rs 2 per unit to Rs 3.98 from 0 to 15 units (kl), from Rs 4 per unit to Rs 7.90 for 15 to 30 units, from Rs 6 per unit to Rs 11 for 30 to 60 units and Rs 8 to Rs 15 per unit for above 60 units.
Limited operation from Chandigarh airport
The Sunday operations from the Chandigarh International Airport will start from July 1. Initially, there will be limited flight operations on Sundays from the Chandigarh Airport. Currently, the facility is closed on Sundays from last October due to runway upgradation. To start air operation, six flights will operate from 1 PM to 6.30 PM — three flights will be to Delhi and one each to Mumbai and Hyderabad and Bengaluru. As there will be limited flights on Sunday, the tickets prices are almost double due to limited availability of seats.