Giving powers to housing society heads to tackle Covid gets mixed response in Pune

Pune: The state government’s decision to give temporary powers to the chairpersons and secretaries of housing societies to allow them to ensure that Covid patients are quarantined in their homes and do not leave the societies, has come in for some criticism

Pune: The state government’s decision to give temporary powers to the chairpersons and secretaries of housing societies to allow them to ensure that Covid patients are quarantined in their homes and do not leave the societies, has come in for some criticism.

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State urban development minister Eknath Shinde, at a meeting on Tuesday, directed divisional commissioners, district collectors, municipal commissioners and chief executive officers of nagar panchayats and municipal councils, to implement the government order strictly, under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Bombay Police Act.

However, society members allege that the temporary powers could be used to settle scores with opponents and impose unilateral decisions leading to internal fighting.

A section of the housing society office-bearers, however, have supported the move and said it would curb the surge in Covid-19 cases.

Dhananjay Patil, an resident of Kalpvriksha Housing Society in Narhe, said, “There is no society in the city where there is no clash between society residents and office-bearers. We have seen that in otherwise normal situations, there is always a game of one-upmanship between society members and office-bearers. This power might be misused by society office-bearers and hence, the decision must be rescinded.”

Sanjay Sharma, secretary, Tulips and Turnips Society in Yerawada, said, “The decision to empower the chairperson and secretary to keep Covid-19 patients indoors is welcome. It will ensure that residents don’t break the law and follow the health protocols, as it is in the interest of society.”

Wagholi Housing Societies Association (WHSA) director Sanjeev Kumar Patil said, “Currently, the residents need to be disciplined as they are violating the protocols and guidelines with impunity.”

BJP state vice-president Madhav Bhandari said, “This decision to designate the society chairperson and secretary as special police officers will trigger internal conflicts. Every society member is doing his/her level best to mitigate the crisis. Decisions like this will create tensions and spread misunderstanding in the societies. The Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government is shirking away from its responsibility by taking such type of decisions.”