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Controversy over PCMC's plantation drive

Tuesday, 14 September 2010 11:39 administrator
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The Times of India   14.09.2010

Controversy over PCMC's plantation drive

 PUNE: The Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation's proposal to spend Rs 91.82 lakh on planting 40,000 saplings on the Bhandara hill near the temple town of Dehu has generated a controversy in the twin township.

The controversy is on two counts. The first being whether the PCMC should spend such a large amount of money on a project outside the municipal limits. The second is related to the proposal being tabled before the standing committee, when the civic general body (GB), which is supreme over all other civic committees, has already approved it.

At last month's GB meeting, the civic administration had at a short notice tabled the proposal and it was subsequently approved. The same day, the PCMC invited bids for the work. But even after receiving the GB's approval, the civic administration has again sent the same proposal for approval to the standing committee, to be discussed in its weekly meeting on Tuesday.

Speaking to TOI, Suresh Salunke, chief of the garden department, PCMC, defended the move. "We had sought the GB's approval since the project is to be implemented outside the PCMC limits. The civic administration has completed the tender process and has now sought the standing committee's approval to allot the contract to the successful bidder."

He said, "The land on Bhandara hill belongs to the forest department and the Dehu devasthan. They had requested the PCMC to plant saplings on the open land. The contractor will plant the saplings mainly indigenous species by end of October, and will tend to them for the next two years."

However, a section of corporators have objected to this expenditure. Speaking to TOI, Ashok Sonavane, group leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party corporators, said, "Ward-level works such as tarring roads, laying paving blocks, repairing footpaths and other works are not being implemented, since the PCMC is facing a financial crunch. Therefore, it is improper for the civic body to undertake such an expensive project outside of the municipal limits." The PCMC will have to divert money from other civic projects to finance the plantation drive, he said.

"The PCMC had suddenly tabled the proposal and got it approved from the GB. Now, it is seeking the standing committee's approval. Is the GB supreme or the standing committee? The civic administration should not set a wrong precedent and the municipal commissioner should reconsider the proposal," Sonavane added.

 

Pruned branches rot on roads

Monday, 13 September 2010 12:04 administrator
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Hindustan Times  13.09.2010

Pruned branches rot on roads

 
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s tree-pruning drive has triggered a malaria scare. The civic body started pruning trees across the city last week after Hindustan Times reported how trees and branches had fallen on people killing or seriously injuring them. The corporation has, however, left the branches on footpaths and along the side of the road. With the leaves on these branches decaying in the rain, they could turn into a breeding ground for mosquitoes, residents fear.

“The BMC pruned all trees along the footpath last week. The branches are still lying there occupying of the footpath. With rains, the leaves and branches are soaked and it’s a mess,” said Prabhadevi resident Shakuntala Patkar. “These sites can easily turn into breeding grounds for mosquitoes.”

The BMC had recently launched a clean-up drive at mosquito-breeding sites across the city to curb the rising incidence of malaria. The wet waste left behind after pruning could lead to the creation of more such sites.

“We were told that the waste would be picked up the next day, but it’s been more than a week and it is still lying there rotting,” Anand Joshi, another resident, said. “It seems one arm of the BMC is not aware of what the other is doing.”

Additional Municipal Commissioner (Health) Manisha Mhaiskar said she would instruct civic officials to take immediate action and clear the footpaths of the rotting leaves and branches.

The BMC had launched a tree-pruning drive across the city last week after several cases of death and injuries to citizens from falling branches and trees were reported.

Corporators had also raised the issue during the BMC’s general body meeting saying the civic body should prune trees before the monsoon sets in.

On August 16, Hindustan Times had reported how 19-year-old Antara Telang lost her right leg when a branch from a peepal tree came crashing down on her in Sion.

A week later, Hindustan Times carried another report on Tamanna Bhojani (30), whose backbone was crushed when a branch from a jamun tree fell on her in Kandivli.

Last Updated on Monday, 13 September 2010 12:07
 

BMC can check, trim trees in your compound

Thursday, 09 September 2010 12:14 administrator
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Hindustan Times  09.09.2010

BMC can check, trim trees in your compound

Following a spate of incidents in which citizens were either injured or killed by falling branches of untrimmed trees, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has decided to invoke a little-known provision in the BMC Act, 1888 that entitles it to trim trees inside private premises and recover costs from the owners of the premises.

The civic body will start issuing notices to private owners and landlords in the next few days asking them to prune branches that may fall, said deputy municipal commissioner (gardens) Chandrashekhar Rokde.

The measure comes after a spate of incidents where branches of trees within private premises collapsed on to public roads, killing one and injuring two others.

Hindustan Times had first reported how 19-year-old Antara Telang lost her right leg when a branch of a Peepul tree came crashing down on her and 30-year-old Tamanna Bhojani’s backbone was crushed, and several of her vertebrae fractured when the branch of a Jamun tree fell on her. 

Following HT’s reports, the BMC chief announced that a new tree-trimming mechanism would be in place by the end of September.

Last Updated on Thursday, 09 September 2010 12:15
 
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