For the 18 lakh residents of the industrial town of Pimpri-Chinchwad, 2011 was a year of highs on the development front. This year, many projects were either kicked off or taken to their logical end. As an icing on the cake, Pimpri-Chinchwad received the ‘Best City’ award from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, right at the end of the year. The award was bestowed on Pimpri-Chinchwad for its performance on JNNURM projects.
“To become the best city among 65 others is an achievement in itself. Even the state chief secretary joined us to receive the award from the Prime Minister,” said municipal commissioner Asheesh Sharma, whose every step is being watched closely by civic-conscious citizens. Little wonder then massive boards have sprung up congratulating him and mayor Yogesh Behl.
Sharma said except for the Pavana pipeline project, which is mired in controversy following protests by villagers from Maval taluka, most of the projects have been completed by the civic body. “The biggest achievement is on the sewerage front, where we are now able to treat cent per cent sewage. Once a couple of more STPs are operational, our capacity will go beyond 100 per cent,” he said. For the slum-dwellers too, there was a lot to cheer about as the PCMC doled out 1,200 flats under BSUP. “We will soon distribute 9,000 flats of the 18,000 planned,” Sharma said.
On the roads front, traffic at two key spots that had become major irritants is now smoother. Work on the Bhosari bridge, which had been limping for four years, was finally over and the bridge thrown open to the public in May. “Earlier, it took more than half-an-hour to cross a small stretch of road at Bhosari chowk. Now, you can cross the same area in a matter of seconds,” said Sachin Godambe, a resident of Dhavde Vasti, Bhosari.
Work on the bridge work at Chapekar chowk in Chinchwadgaon, started two years back, too was complete last month, ending another chronic traffic nightmare for residents. “Moving around in Chinchwad become less chaotic in a matter of few days,” said socialite Saroj Rao. The work on the bridges collective cost the PCMC around Rs 130 crore. In addition, work on Empire Estate chowk flyover and Dange chowk overbridge also started this year. The former will benefit Pune-Mumbai highway users while the latter will ease travel woes towards the Westerly bypass.
The process to set up the Moshi Industrial Convention centre also started this year. “This will be the biggest in Asia and spur industrial growth here,” said Sharma.
On the health front too, things improved. The PCMC began distributing health cards to citizens undergoing treatment at its hospitals. It is the brainchild of the civic chief, who has been insisting that patients should not be made to wait for treatment at civic hospitals. The plan for setting up a cancer screening centre has also moved forward this year. “This will probably be the first to be set up by a civic body in the country,” said Behl.
At YCMH — which caters to patients from five talukas — the pace of progress is in the fast lane. “Besides the health card, MRI scan facility and C-Arm facility started at YCMH. It is the first in Pune to have a casualty ward with 40 beds,” said YCMH superintendent Dr Anand Jagdale
“To become the best city among 65 others is an achievement in itself. Even the state chief secretary joined us to receive the award from the Prime Minister,” said municipal commissioner Asheesh Sharma, whose every step is being watched closely by civic-conscious citizens. Little wonder then massive boards have sprung up congratulating him and mayor Yogesh Behl.
Sharma said except for the Pavana pipeline project, which is mired in controversy following protests by villagers from Maval taluka, most of the projects have been completed by the civic body. “The biggest achievement is on the sewerage front, where we are now able to treat cent per cent sewage. Once a couple of more STPs are operational, our capacity will go beyond 100 per cent,” he said. For the slum-dwellers too, there was a lot to cheer about as the PCMC doled out 1,200 flats under BSUP. “We will soon distribute 9,000 flats of the 18,000 planned,” Sharma said.
On the roads front, traffic at two key spots that had become major irritants is now smoother. Work on the Bhosari bridge, which had been limping for four years, was finally over and the bridge thrown open to the public in May. “Earlier, it took more than half-an-hour to cross a small stretch of road at Bhosari chowk. Now, you can cross the same area in a matter of seconds,” said Sachin Godambe, a resident of Dhavde Vasti, Bhosari.
Work on the bridge work at Chapekar chowk in Chinchwadgaon, started two years back, too was complete last month, ending another chronic traffic nightmare for residents. “Moving around in Chinchwad become less chaotic in a matter of few days,” said socialite Saroj Rao. The work on the bridges collective cost the PCMC around Rs 130 crore. In addition, work on Empire Estate chowk flyover and Dange chowk overbridge also started this year. The former will benefit Pune-Mumbai highway users while the latter will ease travel woes towards the Westerly bypass.
The process to set up the Moshi Industrial Convention centre also started this year. “This will be the biggest in Asia and spur industrial growth here,” said Sharma.
On the health front too, things improved. The PCMC began distributing health cards to citizens undergoing treatment at its hospitals. It is the brainchild of the civic chief, who has been insisting that patients should not be made to wait for treatment at civic hospitals. The plan for setting up a cancer screening centre has also moved forward this year. “This will probably be the first to be set up by a civic body in the country,” said Behl.
At YCMH — which caters to patients from five talukas — the pace of progress is in the fast lane. “Besides the health card, MRI scan facility and C-Arm facility started at YCMH. It is the first in Pune to have a casualty ward with 40 beds,” said YCMH superintendent Dr Anand Jagdale
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