CHANDIGARH: The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has declined the proposal of the Haryana Government to construct a separate assembly building in Chandigarh.

Highly placed sources said that the MHA has advised the senior officials of the Haryana Government not to pursue this matter any further.

Sources further said that this kind of land swap might not fall within the purview of the Capital of Punjab (Development and Regulation) Act, 1952, which governs land use in Chandigarh.

Earlier this year, the Chandigarh administration had rejected the proposal of the Haryana government to swap land, citing the absence of such a provision in the Chandigarh Master Plan-2031.

In 2023, the Chandigarh Administration had agreed in principle to allot a 10-acre plot to the state government for constructing its separate Assembly building.

Following this, a prime piece of land was identified near the railway light point

The land was near the IT Park in the city, adjacent to a 200-foot-wide road that connects directly to Madhya Marg, which was valued at around Rs 640 crore.

In return, the Haryana Government had offered 12 acres of land in the Saketri area of Panchkula to the Chandigarh Administration.

However, the administration turned down the proposal for various reasons, including accessibility issues, a natural drain that divides the offered land into two parts, planning constraints, and it being a low-lying area, making it unsuitable for public projects.