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Draft ward structure: 41 wards to be represented by 165 corporators in PMC
The Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) will head into the civic polls with no changes in its ward structure
The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) will have 41 wards to be represented by 165 elected members in the next municipal elections, likely to be held later this year or early next year. The draft ward structure was announced by the municipal commissioner and the election officer, Naval Kishore Ram, on Friday.
The draft delimitation will be open for suggestions and objections till September 4.
Of the 41 wards, residents from 40 will elect four corporators each, while the Ambegaon–Katraj ward will elect five corporators owing to its larger population of 1.14 lakh. In all other wards, the population ranges between 76,000 and 92,000. In the previous term, PMC had 162 corporators.
“The election office has formed a total of 41 wards. Among them, 40 wards will have four members each, while the Ambegaon–Katraj ward will have five members,” said Ram.
“The municipal administration has followed all the guidelines given by the State Election Commission (SEC) and the state government in preparing the draft ward structure,” he said.
The final structure will be notified by November 4, paving the way for polls.
Ram said the exercise has been carried out in line with the guidelines of the SEC and the state government.
The announcement triggered hectic activity at PMC headquarters with political parties rushing to analyse the new boundaries. Several existing wards have been redrawn, setting up a scenario where sitting corporators from 2017–22 may have to contest against each other.
The merger of 32 villages into PMC limits necessitated the redrawing of all ward boundaries. However, officials admitted that despite accommodating larger geographical areas, it was not possible to strictly follow natural boundaries such as rivers, nullahs and bridges in all cases.
Meanwhile, the Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) will head into the civic polls with no changes in its ward structure. The city will continue to have 32 wards and 128 corporators. The population considered for the ward structure is 17.27 lakh, as per the 2011 Census, said a civic official.
The draft will be put online for citizens to submit their suggestions and objections, and can be filed before September 4.
