Indian Express 24.02.2010
Pimpri: civic body’s budget accepts citizens’ suggestions
MANOJ MORE Tags : budget10 Posted: Wednesday, Feb 24, 2010 at 0616 hrs
Pune: The draft budget, presented by Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Commissioner Asheesh Sharma on Tuesday, accorded top priority to suggestions made by citizens living in the industrial town. Civic officials described it as a “citizen-oriented budget.”As many as 70 suggestions of the over 100 received have been accepted and incorporated by the civic administration in the draft budget, officials said. However, Sharma said all the suggestions made by the citizens have been accepted. “It is a participatory budget. We have made provisions on the basis of suggestions made by citizens. However, few unreasonable suggestions have not been taken up,” he said.
Among the important suggestions include a children’s park suggested by one Chandrakant Gulkatte for Ward 53 in Akurdi. PCMC assistant commissioner Pandurang Zure, who heads the “D” division office, said, “My office had accepted the suggestion and forwarded it to the commissioner’s office. Now, a provision has been made for the children’s park in Akurdi area,” he said.
Zure said another one Dnyaneshwar Khole had suggested an entertainment centre in Saint Dnyaneshwar garden in Pradhikaran. “This suggestion has also been accepted. We will set up all the equipment that entertain citizens and seniors in the garden. A provision to this effect has been made in the budget. In all, 32 citizens had made 34 suggestions in our area and all have been accepted,” Zure said. Another suggestion by Vishnu Ghodke for a toilet near Jiveshwar Society in Sector 28 has also been accepted.
PCMC’s “C” division chief Surdas Gaikwad said his office had received several suggestions which had been accepted and forwarded to the commissioner’s office. Officials from PCMC’s accounts department which had a major role to play in budget making said the suggestions related to works worth Rs 5 lakh were accepted. “Many of them require small amounts for setting up benches, chairs, fixing drainage covers and repairing broken water lines,” they said.
Sharma said apart from making the budget participatory, he has also tried to make it transparent by putting the entire budget on the internet. “This is the first time, the PCMC has made the entire budget available on the internet. Till date, only a copy of the budget was made available,” the civic chief said.
