Bavdhan residents protest in front of local ward office against encroachments, RMC plants

Pune: Residents of Bavdhan staged a protest in front of the PMC's Kothrud-Bavdhan ward office on Tuesday, flagging the lack of permanent action taken by the civic administration against encroachment on footpaths and roads in the area, as well as against the ready mix concrete (RMC) plants in the surroundings that allegedly violate environmental laws.A resident of Bavdhan Budruk who was present at the rally, BS Vyawahare, said citizens are fed up of complaining about issues related to the RMC plants and encroachments. "During daytime, roads are taken over by unauthorised vendors of vegetables and fruits; at night, illegal stalls of hawkers selling snacks, food items and beverages are everywhere here. Footpaths wherever constructed are no longer accessible for pedestrians. Meanwhile, in Bavdhan Budruk, we don't even have proper pavements in many places," he said.He added, "Secondly, RMC plants around here create both air and noise pollution as they are not following norms to curb emissions and also working noisily throughout the night. Moreover, trucks carrying materials in and out of these plants cause traffic jams and ruin the area's roads."The residents, who placed a vegetable vendor's cart at the ward office's entrance as a symbolic protest, were accompanied by area corporator Kiran Dagade Patil. According to the elected representative, multiple complaints have been made by citizens, but Pune Municipal Corporation's (PMC) administrative officials have failed to take action. "I have complained in this regard as well, but in vain. Now, we have decided to lock the ward office if they don't come up with a solution by the end of the week. If they can't manage the ward's affairs, what is the point of a ward office?" he asked.Suhas Mahadev Jadhav, assistant municipal commissioner of Kothrud-Bavdhan ward office, said, "We have been taking recurring action against food trucks and other vehicles encroaching on the road. But the most we can do is impose a fine. The traffic police and RTO also needs to be involved in taking action against rule violators. However, I have asked my officials to visit the said spots at night and take action over the next two days."Jadhav further said that multiple authorities can monitor and take action against irregularities in RMC plants. "We have already asked the PMC engineering department to conduct a site visit and check if the plants are following construction norms and sanctioned building plans. Any action on violation of environmental laws needs to be taken by the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB)," said Jadhav, adding that a meeting will be held at the end of the week to review the work done.