Metro rail project will be our top priority: Mayor Mohansingh Rajpal

Mayor Mohansingh Rajpal completed a year in office on Wednesday. His selection to the post by leaders of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) had led to surprise in political circles. He has been busy attending various social events and connecting with the citizens of Pune.

He lives in Rasta Peth and was elected from Tilak Ayurved Mahavidyalaya ward of the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) in the 2007 election. Rajpal, who has been active in politics for over three decades now, spoke to DNA about his experience as a mayor and his priorities for the future.

How was your experience as mayor of Pune for a year?
I got the honour of becoming the city’s mayor, thanks to (NCP president and Union agriculture minister) Sharad Pawar and (deputy chief minister) Ajit Pawar. The position of mayor provided me with an opportunity to work for the entire city. Right from the first day in office, I devoted all my time and energy to social activities.

For an entire day I used to be busy talking to citizens, attending to national and international delegations and solving civic problems. There were pleasant as well as bitter moments in the career, but the opportunity to serve people gave me great satisfaction. In a single year I attended 2,450 events in the city in which people from all walks of life participated.

What were the important developments in your year in office?
There are more than two dozen important developments that have taken place in the city in the last year. I consider the decision of the PMC to stop open dumping of garbage at the Uruli garbage depot and to ensure processing of entire garbage generated in the city as the most important development in this period. At the same time biogas projects to process wet garbage were also started. |

Approval of the metro project by the PMC was another important development. The decision to purchase 550 buses for the Pune Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Limited (PMPML) was facilitated; a flyover at the busy Swargate Chowk was approved; and a decision was taken to ensure free bus travel for the blind and disabled, and it was implemented during the year.

What are your priorities for the next year in office?
I will give top priority to the cleanliness drive in the city.
Although the problem is not serious, it is necessary to take action to ensure that the city is clean and beautiful. I will try to ensure participation of young citizens in the development of the city. The metro rail project would also be on my priority list and in the coming days, the PMC will start work on the project with the help of the state and Union governments. I will also give importance to river development, a ring road and public transport projects.

How was your journey as a political activist over three decades?
I have been active in politics since the 1970s. I was an active member of the Janata Party, which was formed after the emergency (1975-77) in the country. After the Janata Dal was formed out of the Janata Party, I joined it.

Then in 1989, I joined the Congress under the leadership of Sharad Pawar. I worked as a general secretary of the city unit of the party for a long time. In 1999, Pawar formed the NCP, so I joined that party and ever since I have worked in the political field as a member of the NCP.