Green brigade opposes decision

Former mayor and NCP city unit chief Vandana Chavan has written a letter to the Chief Minister stating that “90,000 Puneites had filed their say” on no construction on hills and the municipal corporation too had filed their resolution to that effect by majority. In her letter addressed to the Chief Minister,Chavan said,“The administration at the state level and local level ought to have by now worked out ways and means to raise the Rs 1,000 crore as compensation or thought of other innovative measures to compensate land owners.” She is supported by veteran social activist Mohan Dharia,activist Anu Aga and environmentalist Madhav Gadgil.

Another environmentalist,Anita Benninger said if the government clears the four per cent construction,then they are in turn changing the “BDP reservation,which in addition brings about 67 per cent change in the proposed development plan for the city and it would be mandatory on the government’s part to again call for suggestions and objections.”

Benninger adds it would again mean a delay in sanctioning of the DP.

With the central government looking at 33 per cent green cover,the green brigade points out that in the present situation,there is only 10-12 per cent cover and had the construction being prevented it would help increase at least 6 per cent of green cover. With suggestions of TD’’s being given to the state government in the last meeting with the CM,the environmentalists are of the opinion that instead of construction being spread out all across they should have been given a certain area in E-zone or C-zone.

Satish Khot of Green Pune Movement said,“How can the government take a stand that their green cover cannot be protected from unauthorised constructions? They can have each ward officer being allocated this area. We had got 90,000 signatures who had voted for the green DP and we plan to get three lakh more for stopping the government to go ahead with this move. “We want citizens to writeto greenpunedp@gmail.com and we will forward the citizen’s opinions to the state government,” he said.

Former town planner Sadhana Naik said once the government clears four per cent construction,one cannot effectively prevent the builders in going in for rampant construction on the hill slopes and hill tops, she asked.