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Tall poles fall short of hoisting tricolour in Pune
PMC has cited lack of technical backing, installation and retention issues to hoist flags on tall poles. The civic body has installed five flagpoles with height ranging between 45 metres and 100 metres at various parts of city
While the Centre has launched Har Ghar Tiranga national campaign under the Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav initiative to encourage Indians to hoist the tricolour in their homes to mark the 75th year of independence, many tall flagpoles in Pune city are empty as the civic administration is unable to maintain flags at heights.
Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has cited lack of technical backing, installation and retention issues to hoist flags on tall poles. The civic body has installed five flagpoles with height ranging between 45 metres and 100 metres at various parts of city.
Civic activists have criticised the “unnecessary expenditure” by PMC and demanded that residents should get to see flags on these tall poles at least during the Har Ghar Tiranga campaign. Civic officials said that flags hoisted on these poles get torn in strong winds and rain and they face the problem of putting a new flag at such a height without support.
Civic activist Vivek Velankar said, “The civic administration was aware of the maintenance issues involved in hoisting flags on tall poles, yet there was a competition among elected members to install flagpoles in their areas. PMC has spent more than ₹5 crore on poles and tricolour. It should make efforts to hoist the flag on these poles during the Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav.”
Corporators have installed flagpoles at Katraj, Shaniwarwada, Warje, Wadgaonsheri and Manjri. Each super-sized flag costs more than a lakh of rupees as it is made of nylon used for parachute. The material has good wind resistance and elasticity, and is lightweight.
Shrinivas Kandul, head, PMC electrical department, said, “We face an issue of maintaining these tall poles and flags. Flags get damaged in wind and we have to replace them immediately as per rules. As flags were getting torn repeatedly, we instructed staff to hoist flags only on national festivals and important days.”
The installation of a 207-feet-tall tricolour by Flag Foundation of India in Central Park, Connaught Place in Delhi in 2014 started a trend across the country to put up tall flagpoles. The Delhi flagpole was billed as the largest national flag, on the highest flagpole in the country. Now there are much higher and larger flagpoles than the one soaring over Connaught Place.
Kandul said, “The cost of each tall flagpole is around Rs1 crore. There was a demand to install more but after the tricolour damage incidents at Katraj, Shaniwarwada, Yerawada and Kharadi, we decided to not install anymore. “
PMC installed a 72-metre-high flagpole, the highest in the state, near Katraj lake, at an estimated cost of ₹1.5 crore in 2018. Subsequently, other flagpoles came up.
“We have instructed staff to hoist flags on all these tall poles within the next two-three days and residents will be able to see it again,” said Kandul.
A senior PMC officer on condition of anonymity said, “Other cities are also facing issues related to tall flagpoles. Contractors used to take NOC from top leadership and approach elected members. The public representatives for popularity insisted on flagpoles in their area from civic budgets and later the responsibility falls on local bodies to maintain these tall flagpoles.”
Flagpoles in city
45-metre-high at Shaniwarwada
75-metre high at Katraj lake
Chima garden, Manjari
Near RMD College at Warje Naka
Garden in Wadgaonsheri
