Former Opposition Leaders Ujjwal Keskar and Suhas Kulkarni, along with former corporator Prashant Badhe, have alleged large-scale irregularities in the Pune Municipal Corporation's expenditure on removing water hyacinth from the Mula-Mutha River and several lakes across the city. In a memorandum submitted to Municipal Commissioner Naval Kishore Ram, they have demanded a detailed review of the work carried out before any further payments are released to contractors.
According to the memorandum, the civic administration had informed the General Body in response to a written query that around ₹7.97 crore had been spent over the last four years on mechanised removal of water hyacinth. However, the signatories claim that the actual expenditure is much higher.
They stated that the PMC has allocated:
Pashan Lake: ₹3.27 crore, with an additional ₹1 crore this year.
Mula-Mutha River: ₹5.20 crore, with ₹1.50 crore allocated this year.
Katraj Lake: ₹2.59 crore, with another ₹1 crore this year.
Jambhulwadi Lake: ₹1.25 crore, with ₹80 lakh allocated this year.
Ramnadi: ₹50 lakh allocated this year.
According to their calculations, the total expenditure on water hyacinth removal over the past four years amounts to approximately ₹16.61 crore.
The former corporators alleged that despite repeated spending, large stretches of the Mula-Mutha River remain covered with water hyacinth. They claimed that anyone standing on Warje Bridge and looking towards Khadakwasla can still see the river heavily infested, raising concerns over flood risks during the monsoon.
The memorandum further alleges that contractors carry out work for only a few days before raising bills worth crores of rupees. It also claims that a significant portion of the water hyacinth is merely pushed downstream towards Manjari or left to be washed away during floods, rather than being properly removed and disposed of.
"We have requested the Municipal Commissioner to physically verify the work carried out using available technology before clearing contractors' bills. Public money should only be released after ensuring that the work has actually been completed," said Ujjwal Keskar.
He further alleged that the same contractor has been handling the work for several years and claimed that officials have privately expressed their inability to act because of the contractor's alleged political connections.
Copies of the memorandum have been sent to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Deputy Chief Minister and Urban Development Minister Eknath Shinde, Deputy Chief Minister and Pune Guardian Minister Sunetra Pawar, Union Minister of State Murlidhar Mohol, Higher and Technical Education Minister Chandrakant Patil, Minister of State for Urban Development Madhuri Misal, the Chief Secretary of Maharashtra, the Additional Chief Secretary (Urban Development), the Additional Commissioners of the Pune Municipal Corporation, and the Deputy Secretary, Urban Development Department.
