Pune: The establishment of a joint municipal council for the villages of Uruli Devachi and Phursungi has sparked concerns about the potential waste of over ₹500 crores spent by the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) on development projects in these areas.
The state government’s decision to form the independent council comes after five years of substantial investments by PMC in infrastructure and waste management initiatives, prompting criticism that the funds may have been wasted.
Since 2008, more than ₹200 crores have been spent on addressing problems caused by the nearby garbage dumping grounds, including setting up a 200 metric ton waste processing plant.
Over the last five years, another ₹250 crores have been invested in various development projects, including roads, water supply through tankers, and sewage management.
A further ₹42 crores were earmarked for sewage management under a larger ₹392 crore project that covers 11 villages, including Uruli Devachi and Phursungi.
Additionally, PMC had planned to implement a regional town planning (TP) scheme over 371 hectares in these villages, with efforts underway to secure ₹700 crores in funding.
However, the decision to establish a separate municipal council for Uruli Devachi and Phursungi may derail these plans, and the funds spent so far could go to waste. The state government has already issued a notification regarding the formation of the new council, which has triggered local opposition.
Members of the "Aaple Pune" organization, including Ujjwal Keskar, former opposition leader Suhas Kulkarni, and former corporator Prashant Badhe, have publicly opposed the decision.
They argue that the municipal corporation had already invested heavily in development plans for these villages, including waiving ₹1,000 crores in betterment charges for landowners.
Additionally, the villages have accumulated ₹200 crores in unpaid property taxes. Removing these two villages from the development plan of 11 villages will require the municipal corporation to revise its plans for the remaining nine villages, a process that Keskar believes is unjust and inefficient.