Indian Express 19.01.2010
Top PMC official living in reserved space: RTI reply
Additional Commissioner of Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) M S Devanikar has been occupying the bungalow at Bavdhan close to Chandani Chowk that has been reserved as an amenity space.
This came to light after Sajag Nagrik Manch procured information under the Right to Information Act (RTI) filed by activist Vivek Velankar. The RTI said the additional commissioner has been living there for the last two-and-half years.
The civic administration is saying the land has been procured by PMC and until things shape up, this property will be used as the civic official’s ‘temporary residence’.
“The bungalow located at Bavdhan Khurd is an amenity space, which is still not in the custody of the civic body. However, despite that, the civic administration decided to use it as a residential place for its additional commissioner. While it is the duty of the civic body to keep a check on the amenity spaces, it is brazenly flouting the rules itself,” said Velankar. “Not only this, but the civic body is even carrying out some construction work worth Rs 2.87 lakh. The Kothrud Ward office has already issued a work order to that effect,” he said.
When asked, the civic body city engineer Prashant Waghmare said PMC had taken over this particular amenity space four years ago. “We took over this land as amenity space almost four years ago. Even though no specific decision has been taken about what the place should be used for, we are temporarily using it as an accommodation for the additional commissioner. The property is worth Rs 15 lakh to Rs 20 lakh and pulling it down would be a loss. Therefore, until further decision regarding this place is taken, it is being used by PMC,” Waghmare said. He said PMC had collected Rs 2 lakh from the property owner for carrying out construction activity.
