Pune Municipal Corporation corporators will contribute one month of their honorarium to the Chief Minister’s Drought Relief Fund after a proposal triggered a political dispute at the civic body’s general body meeting. The decision followed objections from the Congress and both NCP factions over the BJP’s handling of the proposal.
BJP corporators Dhiraj Ghate and Yogesh Mulik initially moved a proposal seeking one year’s honorarium from all corporators for drought relief to farmers. Opposition parties said they supported assistance for drought-hit farmers but objected to the proposal being brought before the House without prior consultation among party leaders.
Leader of Opposition Nilesh Nikam, from the NCP faction led by Ajit Pawar, proposed that corporators from his party contribute one month’s honorarium instead. The BJP then moved a separate proposal for its own corporators to contribute a year’s honorarium. That proposal was unanimously approved, while the final decision applying to corporators was for a contribution equivalent to one month’s honorarium.
The dispute centred on the process used to bring the matter before the civic body. Congress group leader Chandu Kadam said the party supported drought-hit farmers but accused the BJP of trying to gain political advantage from the issue. Kadam said the mayor should have called a meeting of leaders from all parties before presenting the proposal to the general body.
Nikam also questioned the BJP’s authority to take a decision on behalf of corporators from other parties without prior consultation. He alleged that the ruling party had acted unilaterally and taken the other groups for granted. Deputy Mayor Parshuram Wadekar, meanwhile, accused Congress corporators of opposing the drought relief fund, a charge the Congress rejected.
The meeting also included a disagreement over the bonus payable to civic employees. Congress corporator Sunil Shinde raised the issue, after which Ghate objected that discussing bonuses was inappropriate during a drought crisis. The exchange placed two separate financial questions—relief for drought-hit farmers and employee payments—on the same general body agenda.
The contribution from corporators is separate from a larger financial proposal under consideration by the civic administration. Municipal Commissioner Naval Kishore Ram has suggested that the Pune Municipal Corporation contribute Rs 5 crore towards assistance for drought-hit farmers. The report did not specify whether the commissioner’s proposal had been approved or indicate the timeline for any payment.
The meeting’s outcome leaves the PMC with two distinct steps: the approved one-month contribution from corporators and the commissioner’s proposal for institutional assistance from the civic body. Further action on the Rs 5 crore proposal will depend on the corporation’s formal decision and subsequent implementation process.
