NMC not to allot ground to pvt instt

Nagpur: The Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC), following a directive from the Nagpur bench of Bombay High Court, has dropped the plan to allot sprawling part of a playground at Telangkhedi Ram Nagar in mouza Pandhrabodi to a private institution for construction of Jijau Smruti Shodh Sansthan.

Now, efforts are being made to allot a school building on the east side of the playground to the private institution for the project.

TOI on September 25 had highlighted that the NMC proposed to change reservation of 48,420 sq ft area of the playground to allot it to a private institution while denying the facility to Shakti Sporting Club for football and other sports.

The TOI report had also cited two earlier orders by the high court disallowing change in reservation of playgrounds for any other purpose.

Following TOI's report, amicus curiae PS Khubalkar moved a civil application in a suo motu PIL in the HC and raised the issue.

During a hearing on September 27, judges justice BP Dharmadhikari and justice Arun Upadhye told the civic body not to allot the playground to any private or public institution and make it available to children staying in the locality for free.

The court also asked the NMC to file its reply within two weeks.

In a meeting attended by mayor Nanda Jichkar, ruling party leader Sandip Joshi, former mayor Pravin Datke, officials and corporators of ward no. 13 — Parineeta Fuke, Amar Bagde, Rutika Masram and Varsha Thakre, it was decided that the proposed project will be shifted to a NMC school building on the east side of the playground.

Fuke, Bagde and Masram raised objection to developing the project in the school building. Fuke told TOI that it would be inappropriate to close down the school and allot the building and land to a private institution.

"The building houses two NMC schools — Gokulpeth Hindi Primary School and Ram Nagar Marathi Girls Higher Primary School — and Shri Sant Gadge Maharaj Night High School. It will be a big loss for children from poor families. Project should be shifted to any other place or an abandoned building," said Fuke.

One of the office bearers told TOI that the project to be taken up on PP model will be approved in the general body meeting on October 16. "Decision on allotting land would be taken later. Project will be moved to some other place if corporators continue to have objection," he said.