Shimla,
For several years, residents have been demanding that Junga be granted the status of a Nagar Panchayat, but successive governments have failed to act on the demand. Local residents say that despite fulfilling all the required criteria for an urban body, the proposal has remained pending for years.
According to several prominent residents, including Pankaj Sen, Rakesh Kumar, Deepak Thakur, Durga Singh and Baburam, as well as members of the local Chamber of Commerce, every government has adopted a step-motherly attitude towards Junga. During the tenure of the present government, 12 small and large towns in the state were granted Nagar Panchayat status, including Sangrah in the Renuka region. Residents question why Junga has been ignored despite meeting similar conditions.
Sources say that the population of Junga has now reached around 4,000. The town also hosts several important institutions, including a police battalion, a state-level forensic science laboratory, a civil hospital, offices of the Public Works and Electricity departments, a tehsil office, an ITI and several educational institutions.
Despite this, sanitation and civic management remain major concerns. Members of the local Chamber of Commerce often carry out cleaning drives themselves as the Panchayat has limited authority over the area. The bus stand in Junga has only one public toilet, which often remains in poor condition due to shortage of staff.
Residents recall that during a visit to Junga in 2020, former Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur and former Urban Development Minister Suresh Bhardwaj had announced that the town would be granted Nagar Panchayat status. However, the announcement was not implemented by 2022.
Locals also point out that although the Kasumpti constituency currently has representation in the state cabinet, towns like Junga and Koti are still awaiting urban body status. They also expressed concern that buildings are being constructed indiscriminately in the area as the town is not yet governed under the Town and Country Planning Act.
