Hillary Victor is a Principal Correspondent at Chandigarh. He covers Chandigarh administration, municipal corporation and all political parties.
Articles by Hillary Victor
₹8 crore left in coffers, Mohali MC facing major financial crunch
Development works are set to suffer as Mohali civic body’s monthly salary liability alone runs into ₹4 crore
Updated on Oct 04, 2023 07:50 AM IST
Hillary Victor, Mohali
Electric vehicles fail to spark Chandigarh buyers’ interest, only 5% registrations in a year
As per the data, from September 20, 2022, to September 18, 2023, 52,412 vehicles were registered in Chandigarh, out of which, only 2,599 were electric vehicles. The count of two-wheeler registrations stood at 21,400, out of which only 1,807 were electric vehicles
Updated on Oct 03, 2023 09:28 AM IST
Hillary Victor, Chandigarh
As Chandigarh admn presses the pedal on electric vehicles, infra remains in back seat
Chandigarh admn plans to gradually stop registration of fuel-run vehicles to encourage adoption of electric vehicles, but has failed to put public charging infra in place
Updated on Oct 02, 2023 08:38 AM IST
Hillary Victor, Chandigarh
20 months after Tata takeover, Air India closes its Sector 34 office
According to sources, the Chandigarh Estate Office had asked Air India to hand over the building after its privatisation
Updated on Sep 29, 2023 08:34 AM IST
Hillary Victor, Chandigarh
Now, Purohit stalls CHB’s IT Park housing scheme
While the Chandigarh Housing Board (CHB) had again written to the UT chief conservator of forest to approach the green ministry regarding the project, the chief conservator of forest will now not be taking it up
Updated on Sep 29, 2023 08:30 AM IST
Hillary Victor, Chandigarh
Purohit axes Chandigarh admn’s green corridor project after tree-felling plaint
Chandigarh administrator’s decision comes after Prime Minister’s Office directions to ‘take appropriate action’ on a complaint by a city resident
Updated on Sep 28, 2023 09:16 AM IST
Hillary Victor, Chandigarh
Tourists bat for better amenities, promotion of Chandigarh’s main attractions
While some stressed on the need to prioritise fundamentals like better maintaining the landmarks, others emphasised that the Chandigarh administration should take a more proactive approach in promoting tourism
Updated on Sep 27, 2023 09:58 AM IST
Hillary Victor, Chandigarh
Two years on, no approval for hike in Chandigarh senior citizens’ pension
At present, Chandigarh is providing widow and old-age pension of ₹1,000 per month to those with annual family income less that ₹1.5 lakh
Published on Sep 26, 2023 01:06 AM IST
Hillary Victor, Chandigarh
Hope fades for single-screen theatres as Kiran cinema conversion put on hold
The owners of Neelam Theatre, which occasionally screened a couple of shows to mostly empty seats, along with two other theatres—Nirman in Sector 32 and Batra in Sector 37—had hoped that they would also be allowed
Published on Sep 25, 2023 12:55 AM IST
Hillary Victor, Chandigarh
Tourist influx in Chandigarh down by 85% in first 7 months of 2023
Officials from the Chandigarh administration attribute drop to severe heat followed by flood fury in Himachal Pradesh during summer vacations
Updated on Sep 22, 2023 05:47 AM IST
Hillary Victor, Chandigarh
Additional assembly land: Chandigarh admn tells Haryana to give another chunk of land or pay ₹620 crore
The 12 acres offered by Haryana for the land exchange fall in eco-sensitive zone where construction is prohibited by the Supreme Court
Published on Sep 21, 2023 03:04 AM IST
Hillary Victor, Chandigarh
Chandigarh: Heritage panel junks proposal for multi-level parking at Sukhna Lake
The proposal aimed to address the traffic congestion at Sukhna Lake and Bird Park, which draw a considerable footfall of tourists and locals, especially on weekends. At present, there is limited parking space for four-wheelers and two-wheelers at the Lake. The space crunch has only been exacerbated by the installation of electric vehicle charging stations and public bicycle sharing stands.
Published on Sep 20, 2023 04:21 AM IST
Hillary Victor, Chandigarh
Chandigarh: IAF heritage centre’s Phase 2 runs into maintenance hurdle
Christened “Indian Air Force Aerospace and Technical Centre”, Phase 2 will incorporate advanced technology-driven features and experiences, aimed at inspiring young individuals to join the air force
Published on Sep 19, 2023 03:18 AM IST
Hillary Victor, Chandigarh
UNESCO panel scraps 3 projects at Chandigarh’s Capitol Complex
The three projects at Capitol Complex include an underground multi-level parking lot; holistic development plan for Punjab and Haryana high court; and an AC chiller plant
Published on Sep 18, 2023 12:39 AM IST
Hillary Victor, Chandigarh
Share-wise property sale: Chandigarh admn to seek legal opinion, realtors flay delay
In its January 10 order, the Supreme Court had banned conversion of residential houses into floor-wise apartments in Sectors 1 to 30, Chandigarh, while stating that they carried heritage status
Published on Sep 16, 2023 12:19 AM IST
Hillary Victor, Chandigarh
It’s curtains on movie screenings at Chandigarh’s Kiran Cinema
On Thursday, the iconic Kiran Cinema in Chandigarh’s Sector 22 also joined the league of fading away theatres, with the owner deciding to stop screening of movies
Published on Sep 15, 2023 03:53 AM IST
Hillary Victor, Chandigarh
Relief for Berkeley Square: NGT quashes Chandigarh admn order revoking green nod
In August, the State Environment Impact Assessment Authority had cancelled the environmental clearance granted to Berkeley Square in 2015 over violation of environmental norms
Published on Sep 14, 2023 02:26 AM IST
Hillary Victor, Chandigarh
Thanks to long-route buses, Chandigarh Transport Undertaking profit up 55%
Additionally, revenue from suburban routes witnessed a growth of 26.7% in 2022-23 compared to the profit generated in 2021-22
Published on Sep 13, 2023 12:15 AM IST
Hillary Victor, Chandigarh
Swachh Vayu Sarvekshan 2023: Chandigarh trails at dismal 22nd spot
Chandigarh was judged among 47 cities with a population of over 10 lakh; Parwanoo ranks first among cities having population of less than 3 lakh
Updated on Sep 09, 2023 01:05 AM IST
Hillary Victor, Chandigarh
Metro: Chandigarh awaits Haryana’s share for DPR
Punjab has paid its share of ₹1.37 crore for the Tricity Metro project, while Haryana is yet to contribute. The overall cost of the project is ₹10,570 crore, with the states, the Centre, and a lending agency sharing the cost. RITES, the agency preparing the detailed project report, is awaiting consent from the UT administration. The project's first phase has been extended from 66 km to 77 km and is expected to start in 2027. The second phase will be developed after 2037.
Updated on Sep 09, 2023 12:38 AM IST
Hillary Victor, Chandigarh
Chandigarh admn stumbles upon waterworks pipelines at Sector-39 grain market site
The UT is now planning to shift the pipelines, a task that will take nearly five months and cost the administration around ₹5 crore.
Updated on Sep 08, 2023 12:56 AM IST
Hillary Victor, Chandigarh
With no MD for 18 months, CITCO works suffer
Education secretary Purva Garg has been holding the additional charge of CITCO’s MD since March 2022, after Jaswinder Kaur Sidhu, a Punjab-cadre IAS officer, returned to her parent cadre
Updated on Sep 04, 2023 03:53 AM IST
Hillary Victor, Chandigarh
Chandigarh administration, MC tussle deepens
At the MC House meeting on Thursday, councillors refused to roll back the decision on charging double parking fee from non-tricity vehicles, despite Chandigarh administrator’s directive
Updated on Sep 01, 2023 02:59 AM IST
Chandigarh: Tender out to bring Martyrs Memorial to completion
The Chandigarh engineering department has floated tenders for installation of stone artwork, estimated to cost ₹3.5 crore and be completed by March next year
Updated on Aug 31, 2023 02:03 AM IST
Hillary Victor, Chandigarh
Additional assembly land in Chandigarh: Amid eco-sensitive zone concerns, Haryana writes to green ministry
After offering to provide a different chunk of land to the Chandigarh administration as part of the land exchange for an additional Haryana assembly building in its capital, the state government has now written to the Union ministry of environment and forests (MoEF) to de-notify the 12 acres of land in Saketri, Panchkula, originally identified for the deal.
Updated on Aug 31, 2023 12:05 AM IST
Hillary Victor, Chandigarh
Dharam Pal among 7 in race for Chandigarh RTS panel’s top post
Post amended to ‘chief commissioner’, Second Innings Association alleges rules tweaked, writes to Chandigarh administrator
Updated on Aug 29, 2023 01:56 AM IST
Hillary Victor, Chandigarh
Chandigarh: Annapurna Akshaya Patra Project losing steam after doubling prices
The slowdown in the growth momentum of the project started after the Red Cross Society increased the cost of food packets from ₹10 to ₹20 in April 2022, making a direct impact on its popularity and sales
Updated on Aug 28, 2023 12:13 AM IST
Hillary Victor, Chandigarh
Chandigarh stares at ₹150 cr loss from 18 unsold liquor vends
The UT excise and taxation department in India is facing a loss of ₹150 crore this year as 18 of its liquor vends have found no buyers. The department has proposed increasing the liquor quota of existing vends to compensate for the loss. However, liquor contractors are unhappy with the move, as they are already facing losses due to high taxes in Chandigarh compared to neighboring cities in Punjab. The department has so far collected only around ₹500 crore out of its target of ₹830 crore in license fees.
Updated on Aug 28, 2023 12:04 AM IST
Hillary Victor, Chandigarh
Unregistered projects in Chandigarh to face RERA action
RERA had issued a public notice giving one month to owners of all real estate projects in Chandigarh being undertaken without requisite registrations
Updated on Aug 26, 2023 04:57 AM IST
Hillary Victor, Chandigarh
Notices to two commercial complexes: Biz owners decry ‘pick and choose’ treatment by Chandigarh admn
Aggrieved business owners alleged that the Chandigarh administration was adopting a pick-and-choose policy
Updated on Aug 25, 2023 01:43 PM IST
Hillary Victor, Chandigarh
