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Criminals harassing MIDC firms in Pune to be now booked under Mcoca: Ajit Pawar
Deputy chief minister takes serious note of complaints made by various industries in the area
Despite police assurances in the past, industries from Pune district continue to face problems from local goons in various industrial areas. Taking serious note of their complaints, deputy chief minister of Maharashtra Ajit Pawar, during the meeting with industry representatives on Saturday, instructed the Pune police and the Pune district administration to take strict action against criminals threatening industries in the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC).
Bookings in such cases will now be made under the stringent Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (Mcoca), under which accused are unlikely to get bail.
Pawar made the remarks addressing a coordination meeting of different industrial bodies at the Mahratta Chamber of Commerce Industries and Agriculture (MCCIA) headquarters, Senapati Bapat road on Saturday.
Industries and representative groups present at the meeting voiced concerns over the safety and security of the industries with the increase in criminal activities.
“A number of foreign companies have set up their base in the Pune district’s industrial area. The number of foreign investors have also increased over the past few years. However, crime syndicates often harass these companies and their employees. The crime rate too has increased in the area. Hence, the police must take stringent action against the criminals and charge them under Mcoca,” said Pawar.
Pawar also urged industrialists to fund local projects in the area through the corporate social responsibility (CSR) channels.
The security issue in the industrial area forced Jurgen Morhard, consul general of the Federal Republic of Germany, Mumbai, to take up the matter to the concerned authorities in 2019.
Reacting to Pawar’s instructions, Morhard said, “We have at least 382 German companies who have set up factories in Pune district with most of them at Chakan MIDC area. We have faith in local authorities and with the help of the police, the situation in Chakan is in control. The idea of setting up industry monitoring cell to by pass local police station and FIR, the companies can now directly register a complaint. After this cell set up, I am yet to visit the companies this year.”
Naval Kishore Ram, district collector who was also present at the meeting said, “Most companies have complained regarding security. We agree with the deputy CM and are of the view that strict action must be taken against those who are engaged in harassing the industries. Such behaviour is not justified.”
The meeting was attended by Dilip Walse-Patil, labour minister; Deepak Mhaisekar, divisional commissioner; K Venkatesham, Pune commissioner of police; Sandip Bishnoi, PCMC police commissioner ; Shravan Hardikar, PCMC municipal commissioner ; Vikram Kumar, PMRDA commissioner and Ayush Prasad, CEO, district zilla parishad.
MCCIA president Prashant Girbane, who was also at the meeting, said, “Among other issues, we had the opportunity to share concerns about safety and security of employees in multinational companies. Pawar has advised senior police officials to maintain a secure work environment for the companies in MIDC.”
Law and order issues worry industries
Chakan, Bhosari, Talegaon, Ranjangaon, Baramati and Shikrapur are affected areas
Matter taken up to concerned authorities
Oct 2018: German consul general Jurgen Morhard during his visit in October 2018 had demanded that the police must get rid of the organised crime syndicates operating in Chakan industrial belt. The foreign companies’ delegation had also escalated the matter to the then chief minister Devendra Fadnavis.
July 2019: Fifteen German firms led by Jurgen Morhard, consul general of the Federal Republic of Germany, Mumbai, on July 15 met district collector and discussed their problems with the district administration. These include industrial areas like Chakan, Bhosari, Talegaon, Ranjangaon, Baramati and Shikrapur in Pune district.
Nov 2019: The then CM Devendra Fadanvis ordered the then PCMC commissioner R K Padmanabhan to take strict action against mafia groups. Accordingly, the PCMC has formed a special cell headed by an officer of the rank of police inspector to deal with the cases.
Past Cases
July 27, 2019: Ranjangaon MIDC police arrested 12 persons for demanding extortion from an international electronics company in the area
December 4, 2019: The Ranjangaon police booked a deputy sarpanch and three others for thrashing a plant head in MIDC Zone over a labour contract
