The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has approved a proposal to cancel the reservation of over 3.5 hectares of land in Katraj as a municipal playground and reserve it for dairy production instead while handing it over to Katraj Dairy, which is operating from the adjacent plot. The PMC’s city improvement committee approved the proposal on December 20, 2023, officials said on Thursday.
“As per Pune city’s development plan (DP), the playground reservation on the plot measuring 3.591 hectares at survey no 132 (part) and 133 (part) to be cancelled, and the land to be reserved for dairy production purposes with the Pune District Cooperative Milk Producer Sangh being appointed as authority, and the proposal has been approved and is being put forward for suggestions and objections,” the resolution passed by the PMC city improvement committee stated.
According to officials, the PMC will soon put up the proposal inviting suggestions and objections. Municipal commissioner Vikram Kumar has given his nod for the same. However, the proposal is most likely to be implemented as it has the backing of Ajit Pawar.
Once the suggestions and objections are compiled, the PMC will put the proposal before the general body for approval. The proposal will then be sent to the state government’s urban development department (UDD) for final approval so that the land can be handed over to Katraj Dairy.
Katraj Dairy, one of the oldest and largest dairies in the district, is run by the Pune District Cooperative Milk Producer Sangh. The proposal mentions that after change of reservation, the Pune District Cooperative Milk Producer Sangh will be in charge of the land. The dairy’s management, elected in March 2022, is mainly dominated by the Ajit Pawar faction of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP).
The process to change the reservation of the said land in Katraj from being a playground to being used for dairy purposes began after Ajit Pawar, as the then deputy chief minister, wrote to the PMC in February 2021, asking the latter to do so. As instructed by Ajit Pawar, the UDD in August 2021 wrote a letter to the PMC regarding the change in reservation. Later, as instructed by Ajit Pawar and the UDD, PMC commissioner Vikram Kumar put the proposal before the city improvement committee for approval. Eventually, the PMC changed the reservation and has now started the process to hand over the land to Katraj Dairy, the management of which is mainly dominated by the Ajit Pawar faction of the NCP.
The approximate market price of the land in question could be about ₹100 crore, real estate experts have noted. Once Katraj Dairy officially takes possession of the land, it may have to pay the compensation to the private parties owning the land. When contacted, Katraj Dairy chairman Bhagwan Pasalkar said, “We will present a detailed stand on the issue very soon.” He refused to give any reaction immediately.
A PMC official requesting anonymity said, “Although the land is reserved as a municipal playground, the civic body has not yet acquired it. Even the PMC does not have adequate funds to acquire the land. If Katraj Dairy gets possession of the land after changing the reservation, the state government will ask Katraj Dairy to pay the land compensation.”
