Pune: The state government on Wednesday transferred Tukaram
Mundhe, thus prematurely ending his tenure as the chairman and managing director of the Pune Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Limited (PMPML). Naina Gunde, a 2008-batch IAS officer, will take over as the new CMD of
PMPML.
Mundhe, considered a no-nonsense officer, has now been made the commissioner of the Nashik Municipal Corporation. It has been long since the transport body has had a chairman and MD complete his/her full tenure.
Mundhe, a 2005-batch IAS officer, had completed only 10 months at the helm of PMPML. In a bid to improve the services of the ailing transport body and to infuse discipline among the staff, he had allegedly rattled a lot of cages. His tenure was marked by unrest with hundreds of employees being suspended and many seniors facing dismissals. Sources, however, said under Mundhe, the transport body had improved and his sudden removal was a bad step.
"Before the PMPML, he was the commissioner of the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation, where he had initiated stern actions against illegal constructions and encroachments. He was
removed from there after just a year. I feel that his removal is the PMPML's loss. Things take time to improve and some of the steps taken by Mundhe were beginning to show their effect. As far as action against the employees is concerned, Mundhe had always said that employees must perform or face action. The actions were never unlawful," a PMPML official said.
While he had been successful in reducing bus breakdowns, he also implemented the intelligent traffic management system (ITMS), which allows for live-tracking of the buses. He had also introduced the new PMPML app (PMP E-connect) that provided many options and facilities to the commuters.
"However, there were two strikes by the private contractors," another official said. He said Mundhe was not willing to attend the PMC/PCMC standing committee meetings, which made him unpopular among the corporators. He also had a spat with PCMC standing committee chairperson Seema Savale last year, and the PCMC had stopped the release of funds to the PMPML, the official said.
When contacted, Sanjay Shitole, the secretary of the PMP Pravasi Manch, said the decision was politically motivated. "It is sad that he has been removed. Before him, the PMPML was without a chairman for almost 10 months. Before that, Abhishek Krishna was the PMPML CMD, but his tenure lasted around 9 months. Under Mundhe, the complaint redressal and response systems had improved drastically," Shitole told TOI.
PMPML officials are not aware when the new CMD would take office. "Things are expected to be clear only by Thursday," said an official who did not wish to be identified.
Prerna Deshbhratar, the additional commissioner of PMC, too has been transferred. She will work at the state secretariat as deputy secretary at the social justice and special assistance department in Mumbai. Deshbhratar had served in PMC for around two years. She has also worked at Pune Smart City Development Corporation Limited (PSCDCL) as the CEO.
