THE Penang Hill Special Area Plan (SAP) (Substitution) will be amended to include measures to counter the Covid-19-like pandemic, says state Local Government, Housing, Town and Country Planning Committee chairman Jagdeep Singh Deo.
He said it was important for them to take into consideration the Covid-19 pandemic factor when planning the SAP as no one knows when it would be over.
“We need to seriously look into the situation that we are currently in and need to change our perspective on things. Everything around us has drastically changed and it seem to be unpredictable.
“So, we must be prepared to face any kind of pandemic that might emerge in the future. That is why we need to work towards re-strategising the Penang Hill SAP,’’ Jagdeep said during the ‘Focus Group Discussion’ session at Cititel Penang today.
According to Jagdeep, the public hearing for the draft revision of the Penang Hill Special Area Plan is scheduled to be held in November.
“It is crucial for us to get feedback from the residents of Penang Hill as well as the public.
“This is required by the law,’’ he said while adding that the revised draft will also include the cable car project.
Jagdeep said that the state government would find alternatives concerning the cable car project after the Federal Government has withdrawn its RM100 million allocation for the project.
Meanwhile, Penang Hill Corporation general manager Datuk Cheok Lay Leng said the Penang Hill SAP plan needs to be amended due to other factors such as increase in the boundaries and issues on slope maintenance.
“We want to tighten up the elements in the plan so we can have a better control pertaining to the development. We must have a sustainable development for the hill to be protected.
“Penang Hill has to be strengthened over time and we need to prepare it for the future,’’ he added.
Story by Tanushalini Moroter
Pix by Chan Kok Kuan