Chandigarh, June 8 : On the lines of Gurugram and Faridabad, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Tuesday announced the setting up of the Panchkula Metropolitan Development Authority (PMDA) for ensuring timely and swift execution of the integrated development plan for Panchkula. "PMDA would ensure sustained and balanced growth of Panchkula. The authority would work on the similar lines of the Gurugram Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA) and the Faridabad Metropolitan Development Authority (FMDA)," Khattar announced here. He said the authority while working amicably with other departments would ensure the availability of infrastructure and other key facilities in Panchkula, near here. He said in a bid to ensure the people of the state along with Panchkula residents should be aware of the development which has been planned for the city, extensive information education communication campaigning of Panchkula's integrated development plan would be done. The Chief Minister said after Panchkula a similar integrated development plan would be chalked out for Karnal, Hisar and other districts. It was in 2019 when the Chief Minister came to helm in his second stint had envisaged developing Panchkula, one of the vital parts of tricity comprising Chandigarh and Mohali in Punjab in its suburbs , as the second 'economic capital' of Haryana after Gurugram. The Chief Minister said Panchkula is the first pre-planned city of Haryana and since 1972 when the city's first action plan for its urbanization was prepared, Panchkula has gradually witnessed major transformation. "Now taking our development plan a step further, various developmental charges and taxes have been slashed by almost one-third in Panchkula district, bringing them on par with Mohali and Zirakpur to woo investors and further to make potential investment in Panchkula district," he said. He said just like the decision to bring down external development charges and infrastructure development charges on par with Mohali and Zirakpur will not only ensure the overall development of Panchkula but also the ongoing development targets would play a pivotal role in the execution of the plan to develop Panchkula as a smart city, tourist destination and a hub of education and medicity. The Chief Minister said in a bid to develop Panchkula as a nedicity, two big hospitals with modern health infrastructure will be opened in Sectors 32 and 5-C. The state's first joint food and drug testing lab is being opened in Panchkula's Sector 3 with an outlay of Rs 22 crore. He said a wellness centre and 'panchakarma' centre are also being set up at Thapli. Besides, a nursing college is being established in Panchkula. The National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) is being established in Sector 23 and a new Sanskriti Model School has been opened in Sector 26 in order to develop Panchkula as an educational hub informed, said Khattar. "Since Panchkula is the gateway to Himachal Pradesh and Delhi, the state government aims to develop it as an industrial and logistics hub. For this, the state government is in touch with industrialists to attract investors from the pharmaceutical industry in Panchkula and Barwala. A meeting has been held with the Baddi Industrial Association and further plans have been prepared," he added. /IANS