Proposed delimitation of Solan wards withdrawn

The boundaries of the 17 wards under the Solan Municipal Corporation (MC) will remain unchanged, as the district administration has decided to retain the existing status of the wards, which was fixed during the civic body’s upgrade in 2020.

The decision follows the receipt of 55 objections against a draft delimitation notification, which had proposed minor changes in the boundaries of eight of the 17 wards. The delimitation exercise, mandatory ahead of the municipal elections slated to be held early next year, had raised concerns among councillors, who feared it could affect their electoral prospects.

As per the draft delimitation released in June, the population had decreased in three wards — Kather, Thodo Ground and Shilly Road — due to the reallocation of some areas to adjoining wards. Conversely, five wards — Chambaghat Salogra, Lower Bazaar, Jawahar Park, Chaunrighati and Madhuban Colony — recorded a marginal increase in population following the inclusion of nearby localities.

Meanwhile, the remaining nine wards — Deonghat Saproon, Railway Station, Degree College, Sunny Side, Kleen, Housing Board, Tehsil Patrar, Rabaun Anji and Basal Patti Kather — recorded no changes in the figures.

Taking the objections and suggestions into account, Solan Deputy Commissioner Manmohan Sharma said that since the population across wards is nearly uniform and the disparity is minimal, proceeding with delimitation would serve little purpose. A subsequent notification issued on June 30 confirmed the decision to retain the existing ward boundaries.

Notably, the population of 17 wards was 47,418 with Ward No. 6 having the lowest population (2,567), while Ward No. 8 had the highest population (3,422).

Interestingly, a section of councillors had earlier demanded delimitation in March to equalise the population distribution. However, this move appeared to backfire as some BJP and Congress councillors felt that redefining the boundaries would harm their political prospects. The matter was brought to the attention of the Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Dr DR Shandil, who discussed it with the Deputy Commissioner, leading to the decision to drop the delimitation exercise.

However, the councillors’ concerns are far from over. Attention now turns to July 11, when the district administration will finalise the reservation roster for the wards. With 50 per cent of the wards to be reserved for women, besides the SC candidates, many councillors are anxious about their future. A delegation of councillors also met the Chief Minister in Shimla yesterday to express their concerns.

Himachal Tribune