E-Paper
Developers will not be given permission without water sources: Divisional Commissioner
Divisional commissioner Saurabh Rao on Monday said that in the wake of the water crisis in Pune district, no developers/builders would be given permission without identifying the water sources first
Divisional commissioner Saurabh Rao on Monday said that in the wake of the water crisis in Pune district, no developers/builders would be given permission without identifying the water sources first. Rao was addressing the second meeting of a special committee constituted to address the water shortage faced by the denizens of Pune.
The meeting, held at the divisional commissioner’s office, was attended by the Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority (PMRDA) chief; officials from the water supply departments of the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) and Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC); and more than 100 citizens, mostly members of various housing societies, federations and organisations.
Heading the meeting, Rao said that new building permissions should not be given unless developers identify the water sources to avoid the hardships that citizens face later. “Permissions based on undertakings given by developers to provide water should be avoided. Several housing societies have been paying for water tankers for several years and spending crores of rupees. The local bodies should also see if they can bear some part of the expenses of such societies,” Rao said during the meeting.
Rao, pulled up PMC officials for their failure to prepare a detailed project report (DPR) in the past seven years despite the merger of 34 villages with the PMC. The PMC had made no efforts in the past seven years to prepare the DPR, he said. The civic body will take seven more months to prepare the DPR. However, the PMC has been asked to deploy more staff to prepare the DPR on priority, the commissioner said.
During the first meeting of the special committee held on December 7, 2023, civic bodies had been asked to submit reports outlining short-term and long-term measures that would be taken in both Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad to address the water shortage. However, both civic bodies failed to come up with concrete solutions to address the water crisis faced by citizens.
Rahul Mahiwal, chief executive officer, PMRDA, said that there are thousands of new developments coming up in the PMRDA limits. “We are going to verify that the developers and builders have the required water sources. Only after that will they be given new building permissions to avoid water shortage problems in future.”
Vijay Sagar of Grahak Panchayat who was present during the meeting, said that they have raised the issue of water tankers which cost around ₹600 but the portable percentage is less and the PMC should look into it. “The PMC will prepare the DPR for villages such as Undri, Pisoli, Narhe, Ambegaon, Wagholi, Phursungi and Manjri among multiple other villages. The commissioner has ordered the PMC to bear some of the expenses of the housing societies that are facing water shortage and spending crores of rupees every year to procure water,” he said.
Shrikant Savane, joint city engineer, PCMC, said that they are undertaking a site visit and will come up with a solution. “The water supply work from Andra Dam has been carried out by us in a short period of time and the work of Bhama Askhed Dam is in progress. This will help us solve the water issue,” he said.
Pushkar Kulkarni of Pashan Area Sabha, who was present during the meeting, said that while the PMC claims it supplies water, many areas don’t get water supply. During the meeting, the PMC was exposed for failure to provide water despite its claim. “The PMC won’t be able to provide an immediate solution to the citizens when it comes to the water crisis. There is no calculation of the availability of water and building permissions are given randomly by the PMC. This has led to the water woes in the city,” he said.
Nandakishor Jagtap, head, PMC water supply department, said that the decision regarding building permissions and providing financial aid to housing societies facing water shortage will be taken after consulting the legal department. “The decision will be taken by the PMC chief on both the issues. The process of preparing the DPR will be accelerated and we will identify more water sources. However, there is little we can do by way of short-term measures,” he said.
