Indian Express 13.11.2009
Pune metropolitan devp authority soon, panel picks key areas
Survey of transport facilities, waste management and housing top the list
Even as an ordinance for the formation of Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority is on its way, the metropolitan planning committee — which will take the major policy decisions to be implemented by the authority — has set an agenda of key development areas to be submitted to committee chairman and Chief Minister Ashok Chavan.
Survey of transport facilities, water sharing, solid waste management and housing are the key areas identified by the MPC to be put up through the Urban Development Department. Senior UDD officers maintained that the meeting, delayed owing to Lok Sabha and Assembly elections, would be held soon.
“The committee has proposed a multiple mode transport plan for the metropolitan region with the help of the Pune Municipal Corporation, the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation as well as the Lonavala, Talegaon and Alandi municipal councils and cantonment boards. We want a separate survey to be carried out while taking earlier surveys also into account,” said deputy director of town planning and MPC convenor Sadhana Naik.
The committee has sought a survey of all modes of transport for the entire region. “The corporations would conduct the surveys for any one kind of mode of transport — either for BRTS or for a metro rail. We want a survey that would assess all kinds of transport, especially for the fringe areas along with road, water and air connectivity.”
The agency conducting the survey is also expected to give financial options as the survey itself would cost about Rs 20 crore. While the MPC expects detailed funding options, it wants the agency to give a phased programme — with both short-term as well as long-term possibilities.
The other key areas are water sharing, solid waste management and housing projects. “Water distribution is very uneven. Plus, there is a need for multiple sites for garbage disposal and better processing units for waste management. With the population increasing, schemes for housing and slum rehabilitation also need to be addressed.”
The MPC is also keen to take up the issue of a revised land use plan for the metropolitan region spread over 3000 sq km. Though there is a regional town planning provision under the Maharashtra Regional Town Planning Act, the plan was last published in 1998 and there have been many changes since then. “The MPC staff will assess the lands in use and those reserved for various uses.”
The committee has demanded a staff strength of 40, which will be housed in the divisional commissioner’s office.
A base map for collating satellite images with the help of Nagpur-based MR Satellite for the region has also been initiated. “Google images of the existing development and areas for development have also been sought,” Naik added.
