Merger of fringe villages into KMC limits serious, will try to arrange meeting with CM: Mayor Nikam

Kolhapur: Mayor Rouparani Nikam on Wednesday said the long-pending issue of merging fringe villages into the municipal limits was serious and that she would attempt to arrange a meeting between the committee and chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on the issue. "As a civic action committee member myself, I have already been in discussions with villages bordering the city, and some residents of Balinge have shown a positive inclination toward joining the municipal limits," Nikam said, while addressing members of the pro-merger action committee.Earlier in the day, a meeting on the merger issue was held in the KMC standing committee hall, chaired by mayor Nikam, with activists from the pro-merger action committee in attendance. Last year, KMC had resubmitted a proposal to merge 18 villages and two MIDC areas into the municipal corporation limits. "Many fringe villages believe that when Kolhapur city itself is not fully developed, joining the municipal limits offers little benefit. The priority now is to strengthen Kolhapur's development so that villages voluntarily seek inclusion. If the merger goes through, KMC will be upgraded to a higher grade and become eligible for increased development funds," Nikam said.When the mayor had assumed office on Feb 16, state minister of higher and technical education Chandrakant Patil had said proper development could not take place without expanding city limits. Pro-merger activist Baba Indulkar said Kolhapur lacked adequate space as per WHO (World Health Organization) norms, restricting KMC's ability to provide basic amenities. "This a violation of Article 21 of the Constitution, as citizens are deprived of their fundamental rights," he said.Former mayor R K Powar said Kolhapur's expansion had been stalled since 1946. "The city had a population of about 36,000 and an area of 66.82sqkm then. While the area has remained unchanged, the population has grown to about 10.5 lakh now," Powar said.Activists highlighted that issues like pollution, traffic congestion, recurring floods, shortage of land for new development and increased garbage due to the daily floating population had placed additional financial strain on the corporation, ultimately hindering Kolhapur's development.