All clear for long-haul flights
Chandigarh International Airport will soon be able to operate long-haul international flights, as the Ministry of Defence has issued orders to the Air Force to create additional posts of Air Traffic Control (ATC) personnel at the Chandigarh airbase.
The airport is under the control of the Indian Air Force (IAF). By March next year, the requisite manpower will be in place and the airport will be upgraded to enable round-the-clock flight services. Since the ATC was staffed in accordance with the IAF’s operational requirements, the domestic civilian traffic was relatively low earlier.
No parking outside govt offices
Soon, residents visiting government offices in the city will have to park their vehicles within the premises. The Punjab and Haryana High Court has ruled that anybody visiting a government office, should park his vehicle inside the office premises.
The Chandigarh Deputy Commissioner has ordered that all the authorities at institutional buildings along Madhya Marg and Dakshin Marg should make sure that the parking space within such buildings is fully utilised and that no one parking outside the buildings. However the order will not be applicable to buildings that house defence installations, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), the Intelligence Bureau (IB) or other such sensitive institutions.
Playgrounds identified
The Chandigarh Municipal Corporation has identified 99 parks where children can play. This is the first time that the MC has mooted a proposal to provide children with playing areas. The move is being seen as a direct fallout of a number of parents and children approaching the city mayor to reserve parks for children.
The agenda for the purpose would be placed for approval of the Finance and Contract Committee during its next meeting. Once it is approved, boards will be put up in parks saying that children can play in these parks. The city has around 1,800 neighbourhood parks a. Benches and open-air gyms have been installed at these parks, which are mainly frequented by elderly people, hardly leaving any space for children to play.
Drop in number of birds at Sukhna Lake
An increase in the water level at Sukhna Lake has resulted in a reduction in the number of migratory birds, particularly waterfowl, visiting the lake area. This was stated in the Waterfowl Census and Species Count for Sukhna Lake conducted by the Chandigarh Bird Club.
Only 417 waterfowls were recorded in the latest census, as compared to 717 spotted during the last one on November 12, 2017. However, the number of species has shown an increase from 91 in 2017 to 98. The increase in the number of species has been attributed to the development of the Nagar Van area on more scientific lines.