SAS nagar, June 20
In a move favouring residents, the Punjab Urban Planning and Development Authority (PUDA) has allowed the members of the public to use common play grounds, adjoining the educational institutions in their respective areas. The timing for the schools and the residents to use the facility have been staggered.
The school authorities will have to pay 50 paise per sq yard to PUDA to avail the facility. The issue had been hanging fire as no policy for utilisation of the play grounds and the fee structure could be agreed upon during the last eight years — when at least four educational institutions had been allotted sites in Sector 61 (Phase 7) and Sector 71 here.
Sources in the authority said ever since the school sites had been allotted in 1993, as per a decision of the Punjab Housing and Development Board — rechristened as PUDA in 1995, the residents of the respective areas had been protesting as there were no common play grounds for public. Areas earmarked as parks were instead being used as play areas by members of the public.
An official of the PUDA said the four schools had been allotted sites , varying between 1.03 acres and 1.17 acres in Sector 61 and Sector 71. This left little area for providing recreational activities for the students. To overcome the shortage of space, the schools were allowed to commonly use an area of over three acres, adjoining their premises, as play grounds. The ownership of the common play ground sites was with the local authority.
The decision for common use of the play area had been taken at a recent meeting of the authority. In case of Sector 61, the fee for using 1.03 acres came to around Rs 9,200 and in case of the Sector 71, the fee came to use 3.50 acres came to around Rs 8,500. It could not be ascertained as to how the two schools would divide the time allowed among themselves to use the facility.
The official said the decision would not be applicable to the school sites allotted after the revision of the policy of allotment of sites to educational institutions. Now the guidelines entailed that a minimum of two acres of land had to be allotted to a senior secondary school and at least 1.5 acres for matric level schools.
In a move favouring residents, the Punjab Urban Planning and Development Authority (PUDA) has allowed the members of the public to use common play grounds, adjoining the educational institutions in their respective areas. The timing for the schools and the residents to use the facility have been staggered.
The school authorities will have to pay 50 paise per sq yard to PUDA to avail the facility. The issue had been hanging fire as no policy for utilisation of the play grounds and the fee structure could be agreed upon during the last eight years — when at least four educational institutions had been allotted sites in Sector 61 (Phase 7) and Sector 71 here.
Sources in the authority said ever since the school sites had been allotted in 1993, as per a decision of the Punjab Housing and Development Board — rechristened as PUDA in 1995, the residents of the respective areas had been protesting as there were no common play grounds for public. Areas earmarked as parks were instead being used as play areas by members of the public.
An official of the PUDA said the four schools had been allotted sites , varying between 1.03 acres and 1.17 acres in Sector 61 and Sector 71. This left little area for providing recreational activities for the students. To overcome the shortage of space, the schools were allowed to commonly use an area of over three acres, adjoining their premises, as play grounds. The ownership of the common play ground sites was with the local authority.
The decision for common use of the play area had been taken at a recent meeting of the authority. In case of Sector 61, the fee for using 1.03 acres came to around Rs 9,200 and in case of the Sector 71, the fee came to use 3.50 acres came to around Rs 8,500. It could not be ascertained as to how the two schools would divide the time allowed among themselves to use the facility.
The official said the decision would not be applicable to the school sites allotted after the revision of the policy of allotment of sites to educational institutions. Now the guidelines entailed that a minimum of two acres of land had to be allotted to a senior secondary school and at least 1.5 acres for matric level schools.
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