A new controversy has come up over Pune Municipal Corporation's (PMC) road construction projects executed under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model, with former office-bearers alleging large-scale irregularities in the release of credit notes and demanding criminal action.
In a formal representation, it has been claimed that in several cases, only around 20% of road work has been completed, while contractors have been issued credit notes amounting to 80% or more of the project value.
The complainants has termed the practice "serious and criminal in nature" and called for the registration of an FIR against those responsible.
The representation pointed to the provisions under the Unified Development Control and Promotion Regulations (UDCPR), Clause 11.3, which govern the issuance of Reservation Credit Certificates (RCC).
According to the rules, RCCs are meant to be issued only as compensation when reserved land is handed over to the municipal corporation, and can be used to cancel the charges such as development fees, premiums, and property tax.
However, the complainants argued that there is no provision under the regulations to issue credit notes or transferable development rights (TDR) in exchange for road construction or similar works which raised serious questions about the legality of the current practice.
They further highlighted that RCC issuance comes with specific conditions, including:
It is claimed that the system is being misused for works like road construction even though it was not meant for that purpose.
Complainants say that they have raised this issue many a times, but the administration has not yet taken any action.
They also said that in a recent meeting, officials could not give any clear answers about the matter.
They have now demanded that PMC should share full details, including:
They have also asked for all such payments to be stopped immediately until a proper inquiry is done.
Copies of the complaint have been submitted to the Municipal Commissioner, Additional Commissioner (General), City Engineer, and Superintending Engineer (Roads).