‘No meaningful development despite huge funds for Pune from Centre, state’

Pune: Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Sunday claimed that Pune has received massive financial assistance from the Centre and the state, but the local leadership has failed to translate it into meaningful development for the city.

This “failure” underscores the need for a change in the city’s leadership, he said during a rally in the Baner area ahead of the civic polls to the Pune Municipal Corporation.

Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), the BJP and Deputy CM Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena are part of the ruling Mahayuti alliance in the state, but are fighting separately in some of the 29 municipal corporations, including PMC, that will go to polls on January 15.

Highlighting issues such as inadequate supply of drinking water, piling garbage, pothole-ridden roads, traffic congestion and a “deteriorating” law and order situation in the city, Pawar said there was a lack of political will to address these problems.

“We want to eliminate the ‘koyta’ (sickle-wielding) gang and maintain law and order in the city. At the Centre and in the state, we are in the Mahayuti, but the situation in Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad is different. The administrators who hold the reins of the PMC are responsible,” he said.

Pawar said he has been discharging his responsibilities as Pune’s guardian minister.

“The municipal corporation has separate powers. The Centre and the state have provided huge funds, but the administrators have fallen short.