Funding delay puts Pune’s Mula-Mutha pollution abatement project at risk

With the last instalment having been paid in March, the PMC is afraid that the project may face delays if funds are not received soon before the model code of conduct for the state assembly elections comes into force

The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has expressed concern over the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA)-funded Mula-Mutha river pollution abatement project grinding to a halt due to the union government not releasing the latest instalment of ₹343 crore for the same. With the last instalment having been paid in March, the PMC is afraid that the project may face delays if funds are not received soon before the model code of conduct for the state assembly elections comes into force.

The project was announced in 2016 during the first term of the BJP government and began in November 2022. (HT PHOTO)

Jagdish Khanore, superintending engineer of the JICA Project, said, “With ₹65 crore in unpaid contractor bills, immediate funding is necessary to avoid delays. Municipal commissioner Dr Rajendra Bhosle has recently sent a letter to the union government, requesting ₹343 crore for the JICA project.”

“The PMC is ready to pay 15% of the funds immediately but the union and state governments and the PMC have single nodal bank accounts (SNAs). Until the union and state governments deposit their share, the civic body cannot deposit and withdraw its share,” Khanore said.

“There is a possibility that the state legislative assembly election code of conduct will be imposed in two or three months. If the central and state governments do not provide their share, the project could grind to a halt,” he said.

The project was announced in 2016 during the first term of the BJP government and began in November 2022. The union government would cover 85% of the costs and the PMC would cover the remaining 15%. Since the beginning of the project in 2022 to March 30, 2024, the union government has disbursed a total ₹250 crore which includes the last instalment of ₹13 crore. The project involves setting up of sewage treatment plants (STPs) at 11 locations in Pune. Except for the STP at the botanical garden of the College of Agriculture, the construction of the remaining 10 STPs is only 70% complete with electro-mechanical instruments installed. The PMC is struggling to get the necessary funds from the central government to continue the work. MC Dr Rajendra Bhosle has written to the secretary of the National River Conservation Directorate (NRCD) under the union ministry of water power, demanding additional funds. The NRCD needs to release funds on a quarterly basis. Despite entering the second quarter of the financial year, the PMC has not received the ₹132 crore for the first quarter (April to June). The PMC is seeking ₹343 crore for the JICA project for the first and second quarters. Contractor bills worth ₹65 crore are pending and immediate action is necessary to prevent delays.