Mohali turns 19, no more Chandigarh’s poor cousin

Flying high with international air connectivity from state-of-the-art international airport, international cricket and hockey stadiums, Knowledge City, IT City, country’s second-of-its-type Tata Memorial Cancer Hospital, Mohali district is no more Chandigarh’s poor cousin on its 19th anniversary, which falls on Monday.

It was on April 14, 2006, that Capt Amarinder Singh, the then Chief Minister of Punjab, laid the stone for Mohali as 18th district of the state. Nineteen years down the line, Mohali is no longer Chandigarh’s poor cousin, as it used to be two decades back. The district has seen tremendous development in its almost two-decade journey and become the pride of Punjab. It is the first choice of people coming to this part of the region to live.

Mohali, which is being developed as the Information Technology hub of Punjab, has also been witnessing a surge in its growth as well as population. Spread across 1,098 sq km, the district’s population, which was nearly 8.5 lakh in 2006, has now swelled to around 15 lakh.

Today, the district boasts of several firsts in the region — AC fruit and vegetable market, the state’s first Kisan Vikas Chamber, international cricket and hockey stadiums, IT City and the region’s biggest mall (VR Punjab) etc. The Knowledge City has India’s top higher education institutions, including the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) and Indian School of Business (ISB). New Chandigarh is fast becoming a modern city where the Edu City, Medi City and the country’s second-of-its-type Tata Memorial Cancer Hospital are coming up.

Starting administrative services from old Punjab School Education Board (PSEB) office housed in a couple of showrooms in Phase I here in 2006, Mohali now has its own district administrative and judicial complex in Sector 76, which is fully air-conditioned.

The district has the best road network with up to 200-foot-wide roads, 24×7 power supply, first-of-its-type mechanised sweeping system and several domestic sports stadiums to hone the skills of budding sportspersons. It also has the state headquarters of several important government departments, including the Vigilance Bureau, Forests and Wildlife, Medical Education and Research, and Intelligence Wing of the Punjab Police among others.

Mohali is all set to have its own public transport service. “The much-awaited project is almost ready to take off with the route plans of buses having been submitted to the Punjab Transport Department,” a senior official told The Tribune.

Recalling the memories of 2006 when he was appointed the first Deputy Commissioner of Mohali, Tejveer Singh, who is now posted as Additional Chief Secretary, Local Government, Punjab, says, “With good amenities and infrastructure, SAS Nagar (Mohali) has certainly emerged out of the shadow of being a satellite city of Chandigarh since its creation as a district in 2006”.

“As the first Deputy Commissioner of Mohali, we had many administrative and developmental challenges then. I recall that the DC office was run from the refurbished PUDA showrooms in Phase 1 but now operates from a modern District Administrative Complex.”

Today, the Mohali airport has direct flights to Dubai and Abu Dhabi. However, the wait for more international flights from here is getting longer. The international airport has given a boost to the economy of the area by all means.

To look after the civic amenities, Mohali now has a municipal corporation, which came into existence in mid-2013 with Kulwant Singh as its first Mayor.

Born in 1975

Then Punjab Chief Minister Giani Zail Singh had laid the foundation stone of Mohali and named it as Sahibzada Ajit Singh Nagar on November 1, 1975. However, not only the foundation stone has gone missing but also no record pertaining to it is available with any government agency.

A local resident, Baljit Singh Papneja, who had painted and written that historic stone, still has the photograph of the foundation stone-laying ceremony.

“I’m hurt to know that neither the stone nor its record is available now,” said Papneja. He remembers the spot where the stone was laid. Industrial sheds have come up at the spot, which is located behind Phase 1 police station and adjoining Kamla Market. “At that time this area was part of Mohali village, which was renamed as SAS Nagar to develop it as a township with a cluster of Mohali, Shahimajra, Lambeyan, Kumbra and Mauli villages,” he recalls.

Several other old-timers, who claimed to be eyewitnesses of Mohali’s origin, also still remember the stone-laying ceremony.

Chandigarh