PMC intensifies encroachment and demolition drives in BDP areas

The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has intensified encroachment drives in Bio-diversity Plan (BDP) areas across the city

The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has intensified encroachment drives in Bio-diversity Plan (BDP) areas across the city.

PMC has issued 121 notices for illegal constructions and cleared 1, 34171 square feet of areas which included sheds as well as RCC structures (HT PHOTO)

The civic body has also filed police complaints against encroachers along with notices. During the Covid pandemic, the PMC found an increased number of encroachments in the BDP area.

PMC has issued 121 notices for illegal constructions and cleared 1, 34171 square feet of areas which included sheds as well as RCC structures. The process of issuing another 57 notices is underway.

The action and notices issued are in the areas of Katraj (new limit), Ambegaon budruk and Khurd, Yewalewadi, Dhayri, Hingne Khurd, Vadgaon Budruk and Khurd, Baner, Balewadi, Bavdhan, Kothrud, Warje Dhanakwadi, (old limit), Katraj (old limit), Bibvewadi, Kondhwa, Khurd (old limit), Hadapsar, (old limit), Wanowrie, and Parvati.

The city is surrounded by a range of hills like Dive Katraj ghat, Panchgaon, Fergusson hill, Parvati hill, Chaturshringi hill, and Vetal hill. The areas were already covered with slums and unauthorized constructions and it has spread over seven hills in the 12 merged villages of 23 merged villages.

This includes 124.45 hectares of government land and 853.09 hectares of privately owned land.

The purpose of reservation BDP is to save hill slopes and hilltops and maintain greenery in the city. The state government merged 23 new villages in 1997 in old Pune city limit. After that, the civic body prepared a development plan for 23 merged villages in 2005. After that, the state government gave approval to 23 merged villages DP in parts.

In 2015, the Maharashtra government took a decision to give 8 per cent green Transfer Development Rights (TDR) to the landowner as compensation and acquire the BDP land. However, owners are not happy with the compensation and they want cash compensation instead of TDR as rates of TDR are very low.

At present, due to the less compensation amount, most of the BDP land has encroached. Some of the landowners are selling land in small pieces in the market.

Last year, during the Covid pandemic period, the PMC found an increase in encroachments in BDP areas. Therefore, after the unlock process started, the PMC building permission department kickstarted a drive and cleared more than 1 lakh square feet of encroachments from the BDP area.

Besides that, the PMC issued more than 15 notices and filed four police complaints in Hingne and Kondhwa area.

After December 2020, the PMC started an encroachment drive in the BDP areas.

Vandana Chavan, Member of Parliament (MP) of Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) recently met PMC commissioner Vikram Kumar and demanded action on encroachments.

Yuvraj Deshmukh, superintendent engineer of the building permission and control department said, “We have intensified the encroachment drives in the BDP areas. Now, our engineers are continuously checking encroachments. PMC commissioner has also instructed to take strict action against any encroachment in the BDP area.”

Namdev Gambhire, executive engineer of building permission and control department said, “We have taken action in Katraj (new limit), Ambegaon budruk and Khurd, Yewalewadi, Dhayri, Hingne Khurd, Vadgaon Budruk and Khurd areas. We collected a fine for digging in the BDP area of Kondhwa and Katraj. We also wrote a letter to the tahashildar about illegal mining in the BDP area. We filed four police complaints on encroachers in Kondhwa and Hingne area.”

Pune’s BDP areas

Baner-Balewadi (89.07 hectare)

Bavdhan-Kothrud (279.82)

Warje-Shivane (166.18)

Hingne-Wadgaon-Dhayari (118.42)

Dhankwadi-Ambegaon (20.05)

Katraj (216.30)

Kondwa-Undri (45.73)

Mohamadwadi-Hadapsar (42.94)