Raju Savale, vice-president of the environment cell of the Pimpri
Chinchwad unit of MNS said, “The civic body constructed fountains in the
gardens, main chowks and other important places in the city. But the
MNS found many of these fountains to be defunct during inspections in
2010 and 2013. So we sought details from the PCMC under the Right to
Information (RTI) Act 2005. We had queries about the total number of
fountains created by the civic body in the municipal limits, the
expenditure incurred on it, the work order given, the final amount paid
for it, number of operational and non-operational fountains, amount
spent on repairs and total expenditure made on them till date.”

Savale added, “The civic body gave information that there are 35
fountains in the city as of March 26, 2013. Of these, 10 are operational
and 25 are non-operational. The operational fountains are not fully
operational. The civic body has spent Rs 74.85 lakh on construction of
these fountains and Rs 16.40 lakh on their repairs till date. As a
result, it has spent a total of Rs 91.25 lakh on these fountains.”

MNS has submitted a letter to the municipal commissioner, Shrikar
Pardeshi, demanding that the contractors who were supposed to repair and
maintain the fountains be blacklisted. The civic flying squads should
prepare a report about the working of fountains and take action against
concerned officials, the memorandum said. When contacted, Pardeshi said
he will look into the issue.