June 26, 2013 2:09:30 am
Considering that not everyone would be able to physically submit their objections and suggestions on the draft development plan (DP) of Pune,NGOs in the city have been able to convince the civic administration to consider emails that citizens would be sending to register their view on it.
Accordingly,citizens have been asked to make their opinion count by sending emails to the city engineer of Pune Municipal Corporation and the town planning officer.
Many of you may not have been able to send a hard copy of your letter of objections and suggestions due to one reason or the other. The municipal commissioner has said he will consider all the emails,too. Though you will not be able get a receipt,PMC has to consider your letter and even invite you for the hearing, said Satish Khot of National Society for Clean Cities (NSCC).
Citizens may forward their email to the city engineer at prashant.waghmare@punecorporation.org,and the town planning officer PMC at tpo@punecorporation.org,complete with their name and address by Wednesday evening. The NSCC would keep a track of the emails sent to the civic administration. This is our effort to protect the city and improve the quality of life here, said Khot.
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Among the few objections raised by the citizens and NGOs is the deletion of reservations of land for public purpose,garden,school,playground,childrens playground and hospital in the 1987 DP and their conversion for residential or commercial purpose. A few of the changes were made by the civic administration while the rest by elected representatives on the city improvement committee and in the general body.
There has been strong protests against the reservation of open plots with housing societies,saying such spaces are meant for society members while the plots reserved under the DP are meant for use by all.
There has been a demand for planning roads,taking into consideration separate earmarked paths for pedestrians and cyclists while no flyover,subway,grade-separators,skywalks should be constructed if it is not in the comprehensive mobility plan. Roads in ecological sensitive areas such as riverbed,green belts,hilltops,hill slopes,nalas,along canal and tunnels are opposed as they will affect the wildlife and flora and fauna of the city.
With a suggestion to take into consideration the CDAC report on hilltops and hill slopes,the provision for conversion of hill top and hill slope in some areas for residential purpose is opposed.
The applicants also expressed shock over the depiction of Mutha river in blue colour only in the channelised section in the draft DP. On the efforts of converting agriculture land for residential purpose,there has been a suggestion that it should be allowed only through a town planning scheme.
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