BDP issue needs viable answer,says Ajit Pawar

Pawar was equally vocal about the underground Metro for Pune. “We want an underground Metro in the city as an elevated Metro in Mumbai and Bangalore was not good. We admit that approving elevated Metro at the PMC general body was a mistake. We need to correct the same and now we support underground Metro as it is a sustainable option for the city,” he said.

The draft DP for the 23 fringe villages approved by the PMC in 2005 recommends 1,600 hectares of land in these villages to be reserved for BDPs. This includes 978 hectares of land owned by private owners which the PMC will have to acquire by paying compensation. The DP is pending for the state government’s approval as there is no consensus on the BDP issue.

It was decided that farmers whose land will be acquired should get maximum compensation. “A decision which is agreeble to all parties should be worked out and the chief minister should not delay the DP,” said Pawar.

The NCP,which has been the ruling party in the PMC for the last four and half years,was pushing for construction in the proposed BDP in 23 villages that merged into the PMC limits. A majority of its corporators and leaders,including mayor Mohansingh Rajpal,had supported constructions vehemently.

However,Pawar changed his stand and had said no construction should be allowed. Pawar’s stand came as a surprise as it was on the insistence of NCP leaders that the Congress changed its stance on BDPs and Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan announced in Pune last week that 4 per cent construction would be allowed.

Pawar also clarified that he was not against giving maximum rates to sugarcane growers. “We represent farmers and we could not oppose the higher rates. Recently I had stated that sugar mills should ensure that farmers get good rate for their crop. But my statement was misinterpreted,” said Pawar.