After being instrumental in promoting the elevated metro railway project, the party has now taken a stand that would lead to scrapping of the entire project.
The sudden change of heart by the ruling Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) regarding the Pune metro project has caught everyone by surprise.
After being instrumental in promoting the elevated metro railway project in the city and passing it in the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC), the party has now taken a stand that would lead to scrapping of the entire project.
The NCP, which ensured the clearing of the proposals for metro in 2010, knew that it was a project for elevated metro. However, the about-turn happened after chief minister Prithviraj Chavan, who belongs to the Congress party, declared in Pune on Monday that the city needs metro and it would be developed.
Similarly, the new stand taken by the NCP on the bio-diversity park (BDP) would lead to more complications in approving the development plan (DP) of 23 merged villages, pending with the state government for last six years. Not allowing construction would mean needing huge funds to acquire thousands of acres for the project.
The approval of the DP was on hold due to difference of opinion between the NCP and the Congress about allowing construction in the BDP. While the Congress was insisting that no construction should be allowed in the BDP, the NCP took the opposite stand.
The NCP’s change of stand regarding construction in BDP took place after the chief minister declared on Monday that the state government would allow 4% construction in BDP.
It may be recalled that NCP chief Sharad Pawar had held a meeting of city MLAs on the metro project in September 2006.
In May 2009, Delhi Metro Railway Corporation (DMRC) had presented the draft detailed project report (DPR) to the PMC and since then it was known that the metro railway project would be an elevated one.
The standing committee under chairmanship of NCP had approved the DPR for the metro project. It was with the support of NCP that the proposal was passed in the general body (GB) meeting of the PMC in January 2010, and later in June 2010.
Since then, the project was awaiting the state government’s approval.
Chavan on Monday had said that the state government was working on a financial package for the metro project.
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