The Times of India               03.01.2014

Roads, Rankala lake new mayor's priority

Kolhapur: Sunita Raut of the Nationalist Congress Party was elected unopposed the 39th mayor of Kolhapur Municipal Corporation.

The general body meeting on Thursday also elected Mohan Gonjare as the deputy mayor.

After the election, Raut told reporters: "The roads in the city are incomplete as contractors declined to take the work. My aim will be to create confidence among the contractors and start the work as early as possible. My other goal is to make Rankala pollution free. The work is in last stage and I want to complete it in my tenure," she said.

The meeting, held under the chairmanship of collector Rajaram Mane, elected Sachin Chavan (Congress) as chairman of the standing committee, Vasant Kogekar (Jansurajya Shakti Party) as chairman of the transport committee and Rohini Kate (NCP) as chairman of the women and child welfare committee.

Raut, 42, the corporator from Padmaraje Udyan ward, is wife of former corporator and NCP leader of the house Ajit Raut.

The elections were a mere formality as the names were decided and finalized in a meeting of the leaders of NCP and Congress last week.

As per the arrangement between the NCP and the Congress, the mayoral post is shared between the two parties.

The general body meeting started at 11 am, after paying homage to former mayor Shamrao Shinde, who died on Wednesday.

Raut is the fifth mayor in the ongoing house, which was constituted in October 2010. Before her, Vandana Buchade, Kadambari Kawale Jayashree Sonawane and Pratibha Naiknaware have become mayor.