REASONS: Delay in formation of city development authority and special purpose vehicle to raise funds

Even as Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) is in the process of going ahead with many flyovers in various parts of Mumbai, there is no corresponding activity in Pune for a variety of reasons. This fiscal witnessed the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) propose 10 flyovers through a special purpose vehicle (SPV) but none got the state government nod. Now, with only five months to go in 2009-10, the proposals will remain on paper unless the formation of a regulatory body along the lines of MMRDA.

According to sources, the major problem in Pune is the absence of an umbrella body that will ensure the overall development of the region and the delay in formation of the Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority (PMRDA) is proving costly.

A senior bureaucrat said the failure of speeding up the formation of PMRDA is the main reason for Pune lagging behind cities like Mumbai in terms of infrastructure development; the inordinate delay in forming an SPV to raise funds for various projects has also hampered the development.

“The PMRDA should have been formed long ago but there has been both political and bureaucratic delays. The state cabinet had in February approved an amendment in the Maharashtra Regional Town Planning (MRTP) Act to facilitate its formation. The move was ratified by the state legislature but was not cleared by the Upper House. Even after the urban development department presented a note on the amendment of the MRTP Act, the PMRDA could not take off,” he said.

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