Maharashtra government pulls plug on civic body’s LED project

PMC official says centre, state to procure it at centralised level

The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) will have to stop procurement of light-emitting diode (LEDs) as the Maharashtra government has instructed all corporations and councils in the state to stop purchases for the same.

The PMC had planned to procure 50,000 new LED street lights as per earlier investment, but the purchases had been declared as substandard. (Virendra Singh Gosain/HT PHOTO)

Srinivas Kandul, PMC electric department head, said, “The state government has instructed not to purchase LEDs and so PMC will have to stop the procurement process. The civic body had started the process for procuring 50,000 LEDs in the city.”

Kandul said that the decision is not limited to Pune but instructions have been given to all municipal corporations and councils in the state. The central and state governments are planning to procure it at a centralised level. “The PMC will wait till the state government gives further instructions,” Kandul said.

The PMC had planned to procure 50,000 new LED street lights as per earlier investment, but the purchases had been declared as substandard.

According to an electric department member requesting anonymity, the net spend forecast on the new LEDs and light fitting requirements will be ₹ 24.55 crore.

Kandul said, “PMC was planning to procure 50,000 new LED fittings as the quality of the existing LED fittings installed at the ward level is poor. Also, the regional ward offices installed almost 65,000 fittings, most of them sourced from local manufacturers which are of poor quality.”