The Times of India            15.11.2010

PUNE: With the new government taking reins at mantralaya, city politicians have said that the process of forming the much-awaited Pune Metropolitan Regional Development Authority (PMRDA) and approval of the Green Development Plan (Green DP) for fringe villages will gain momentum.

Before the civic elections, scheduled for February 2012, the Congress-NCP government led by Prithviraj Chavan will clear all the development projects and plans for the city, said Congress leader and corporator Aba Bagul. The Pune Municipal Corporation is also awaiting an approval for the special purpose vehicle (SPV) and the ambitious metro rail project.

"It is a fact that most of the projects are long-pending with the state. Now, we hope for immediate approval for at least the DP. With Ajit Pawar taking charge as deputy chief minister, Pune will get maximum benefit," said NCP leader and corporator Nilesh Nikam.

Congress-NCP leaders in the city feel that as city MP Suresh Kalmadi and Ajit Pawar have joined hands, there will not be any conflict between the parties.

It maybe noted that the Green DP was pushed by the Congress party in the PMC when it was in power and was sent to the state government. However, after the power equations changed in the PMC and the NCP took over with support from the BJP and the Shiv Sena, the green DP was left in abeyance at the state level.

The state legislature has approved an amendment to the Maharashtra Regional Town Planning (MRTP) Act to clear the final legal hurdle in the formation of the Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority (PMRDA). In 1997, the government had announced formation of the PMRDA and the assembly had passed a resolution in 1999 in favour of it, incorporating several municipal councils and corporations and 100 villages. The actual formation of the body was pending due to technical reason amendment to the MRTP Act.

The Metropolitan Planning Committee (MPC) for the PMRDA is already in place. In April 2008, polls to the 30-member MPC were conducted. Development of the Pune region would be undertaken according to the draft development plan (DP) prepared by the MPC. The PMRDA would be the implementing agency for this draft DP. "The state government has to give a final go-ahead to the PMRDA which will happen without any delay," said NCP leader Ankush Kakade.

Similarly, the SPV, which has been proposed as a PMC-undertaking company called the Pune Municipal Infrastructure Development Corporation, was approved by the PMC general body and was forwarded to the state government for approval. The civic body has initiated the SPV to raise Rs 24,000 crore and also to execute ambitious projects like the metro and mono rail.

The Times of India           15.11.2010

MCG enlists 28 illegal colonies

 GURGAON: The Municipal Corporation of Gurgaon (MCG) has submitted a list of 28 unauthorized colonies in the city which are fit to be taken under the ambit of the corporation. The authorization will ensure that these colonies receive basic amenities like drinking water, sewage management plans and well-laid roads.

Last year, the MCG had prepared a list of 62 unauthorized colonies, all of which have already been evaluated by the corporation. A new list of 20 more colonies will be forwarded to the state government for consideration in the next two weeks, added officials.

The new list includes areas like Saraswati Vihar, Ravi Nagar, Basai Enclave and Hans Enclave. Though the MCG has been looking after sectors like sanitation and solid waste management in these areas, a complete involvement would be possible only after the approval, said MCG commissioner R K Khullar.