PMRDA team to visit construction sites to check water sources of new housing projects

The completion certificate will be issued only if the water requirements are satisfactorily addressed

Following orders from divisional commissioner Saurabh Rao, the Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority (PMRDA) will send a team to inspect construction sites. The team will check the water source to ensure it meets the residents’ needs as per the regulations. The completion certificate will be issued only if the water requirements are satisfactorily addressed.

In the meeting, it was decided that no new permits for construction in the PMRDA jurisdiction would be issued without checking the availability of water and the capacity of local bodies, such as PMRDA and Zilla Parishad, to supply water to the new constructions. (HT PHOTO)

Last year in the month of November, 11 non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and citizens’ groups had served legal notice to the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC), Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) and Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority (PMRDA) over failure to resolve the persistent water crisis in their respective jurisdictions.

After that, a meeting was recently held at the Pune Divisional Commissionerate, chaired by Rao, to address the water shortage issue. Representatives from various organisations, including the PMC, PCMC, PMRDA, Zilla Parishad, Gram Panchayat Area Housing Association, Housing Federation, All India Consumer Panchayat, and Maharashtra Housing Association Federation attended the meeting. PMRDA commissioner Rahul Mahiwal and PCMC additional commissioner Pradeep Jamble were also present.

In the meeting, it was decided that no new permits for construction in the PMRDA jurisdiction would be issued without checking the availability of water and the capacity of local bodies, such as PMRDA and Zilla Parishad, to supply water to the new constructions. Rao emphasised that new construction permissions should not be granted solely on the basis of affidavits from builders.

Sunil Marale, joint director, town planning, PMRDA, said, “Divisional commissioner Saurabh Rao has given instructions that the constructions in the limit should be allowed only if there is availability of water. As per his instructions, PMRDA officials are going to visit the site.”

For large construction projects within the PMRDA limits, construction professionals typically promise to supply water to the Gram Panchayat or PMRDA. However, many times, these commitments are not fulfilled. To address this, PMRDA officials will now personally visit construction sites to verify water availability and assess the feasibility of supplying water, especially during the summer. Only after these checks will completion certificates be granted for the projects.

Shantilal Kataria, a member of the governing council of the Confederation of Real Estate Developers Associations of India (CREDAI-national) and managing director of Aditya Builders, said, “Development is underway in the newly merged villages within the PMC limits. Most housing projects are nearing completion, and we have arrangements in place to provide water to the residents. The PMC is also supplying water to the housing societies. The water issue is rearing its head in other parts of the PMRDA region as well. Instead of halting completion certificates, the administration should find a solution. We support their efforts.”