Nashik Municipal Commissioner and Chief Administrator Dr Ashok Karanjkar opted against imposing any new tax hikes in the city's latest budget for the fiscal year 2024-25. However, the budget failed to introduce any fresh plans for the city's development, essentially recycling schemes from previous budgets. This has led to criticism labelling the budget as "old wine in a new bottle."
Despite an increase of 10 per cent compared to the previous year, with a budget of ₹2,600 crore being presented, the lack of new initiatives has left citizens feeling let down. The NMC, which has been under administrative rule for the past 18 months, saw Karanjkar presenting the budget, yet it failed to address many longstanding issues.
Last year, the focus was on increasing municipal revenue through the Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) model, aiming for an income of ₹150-200 crore. However, due to time constraints, this goal was not achieved. The same strategy has been carried forward into the current financial year, with an expected income of ₹150 crore annually.
The budget includes familiar projects such as GIS mapping of the city, removal of black spots, the neo-metro project, and the construction of a facility resembling Ramoji Film City at the Phalke memorial site. Additionally, plans for a homeless shelter centre, electric charging stations, and the Radaroda project for debris disposal have been reiterated. These same points dominated last year's budget and continue to be the main focus this year.
However, critics argue that there is a lack of innovation in terms of future city development. Ex-Commissioner Dr Chandrakant Pulkundwar's initiatives, included in previous budgets, demonstrated a more ambitious approach to budget allocation. The absence of fresh ideas in the current budget has raised concerns about the city's long-term growth and development.
