PMC clears ₹400-crore proposals before model code is enforced

Anticipating poll code to come into force in three to four days from now, PMC standing committee on Friday cleared nearly ₹400 crore worth of tenders

Pune: With the model code of conduct for the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) elections expected to be announced in the next few days, the civic administration pushed through a flurry of major development proposals on Friday. Anticipating that the code could come into force as early as three to four days from now, departments rushed files to the Standing Committee, which met late in the evening and cleared nearly ₹400 crore worth of tenders.

Anticipating poll code to come into force in three to four days from now, PMC standing committee on Friday cleared nearly ₹400 crore worth of tenders. ((PIC FOR REPRESENTATION))

A senior PMC official said the administration had been working “against the clock,” adding that any delay would leave essential civic works stalled for months once the code is imposed. The urgency stems from the ongoing winter session of the state legislature in Nagpur, which ends on December 14. Civic officials expect the election code for PMC to be declared soon after, likely within two to three days of the session’s conclusion.

PMC commissioner Nawal Kishore Ram has lined up a major inauguration programme for Monday, December 15, with chief minister Devendra Fadnavis scheduled to launch several completed development projects. Officials said the timing was deliberate, noting that no inaugurations can be held once the poll code is enforced. They added that there is a strong possibility of the code being announced the very next day.

Friday’s Standing Committee meeting, chaired by commissioner Ram, began after 6pm and continued late into the night as departments queued up with last-minute proposals. A committee member said the workload was unusually heavy, calling it “likely the last meeting before the code kicks in.” Along with items listed on the agenda, several additional subjects were taken up on the spot and cleared.

Officials said the administration’s priority was to ensure that no key project is delayed due to the timing of the election announcement. Major approvals pushed through include a ₹284-crore tender for hiring 340 small garbage-collection vehicles for five years, a ₹22-crore contract for mechanical waste-transfer operations for five years, a ₹2-crore allocation for tree plantation under the Pune River Rejuvenation Project, and clearances for 88 development proposals across departments.