Mohali, Aug. 5 -- If all goes well, Mohali will soon get its own bustling commercial heart on the lines of Chandigarh's iconic Sector 17.

Sector 87, which was earlier being planned as a mixed-use area under the land pooling policy, will now be developed as a purely commercial zone.

Following directions from the Punjab department of housing and urban development, the Greater Mohali Area Development Authority (GMADA) is finalising plans to develop Sector 87 as a lively business and shopping hub in the next two years.

Last week, after GMADA received several representations from stakeholders seeking a change in land use (CLU), it approached the department to allow mixed development. However, the department rejected the proposal and instead...