PUNE: The Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) has wrapped up the period for public feedback on its draft revised development plan.
“We received 49,000 suggestions and objections from residents,” reported Prasad Gaikwad, deputy director of PCMC’s town planning department, to TOI.
He further noted that a committee of civic officials and external experts will be assembled to review the submissions before finalizing the draft, which will be sent to the state government for approval. The draft was initially approved during a standing committee meeting led by municipal commissioner Shekhar Singh on May 16.
In accordance with regulations, the draft was made available for public access on the civic body’s website and at the town planning department office. Residents had a 60-day window to submit their feedback from the publication date.
Several resident associations and politicians raised concerns regarding the proposed public amenities and road networks, arguing that some roads would traverse densely populated neighborhoods and that certain amenity allocations were incorrectly designated. Recently, residents staged a protest against the High Capacity Mass Transit Route (HCMTR), which threatens established residential areas.
Dhanaji Yelkar, convener of the ‘Swabhimani Ghar Bachao’ committee, emphasized that while the HCMTR was included in previous plans, the route was never developed, leading to new residential constructions along its path. “If the alignment isn’t revised, these homes will be adversely affected,” Yelkar stated.
BJP MLC Amit Gorkhe, who addressed the matter in the legislative council, called for the draft to be annulled, alleging that inappropriate reservations had been imposed on residential areas for which plans had already been approved by PCMC. He pointed out that land had also been reserved for bus depots and police stations on sites designated for the Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Memorial.
Last month, religious groups and worshippers protested against a proposed slaughterhouse in Moshi, approximately 4 km from the Sant Dnyaneshwar Maharaj Temple in Alandi. In response to the backlash, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis asserted that the government would not permit a slaughterhouse near a religious site and that the reservation for it would be revoked.
The draft of the revised development plan covers an area of 173.24 square kilometers and is designed with projected population growth in mind, anticipating 4.2 million residents by 2031 and 6.1 million by 2041 in Pimpri Chinchwad, according to civic officials.
