PMC environment status report: Punekar 2.0; Fly more, drive less and go solar
The city is writing an economic success story with growing IT, education and service sectors, and small and medium-sized businesses. While rise in disposable income has improved quality of life; residents, aware of environmental responsibilities, are also adopting conservation measures
There is something to cheer about for those living, settled, moved to, and others in Pune. Life in the vibrant city has changed for better, in terms of lifestyle with rise in disposable income. Significant growth in information technology and service sectors in the city has led to higher economic wealth and improvement in quality of life.
The recently released Environment Status Report (ESR) for 2018-19 by Pune Municipal Corporation states that residents prefer air travel over train and bus. Urban life has also generated awareness about environment and users of cab aggregator (Ola, Uber) have increased with vehicle sale number in Pune seeing a dip for the first time. The choice not to own a vehicle is now considered quality-of-life improvement by many residents.
The initiatives carried out by Pune Municipal Corporation have also seen a rise in housing societies adopting green measures like rainwater harvesting, vermiculture, solar panel installation and use of non-conventional energy sources.
Mangesh Dighe, environment officer, PMC said, “The data available from various government agencies show growth in per capita disposable income of residents and rise in quality of life. Apart from rise in air travellers, a positive change is that instead of buying private vehicles, citizens are preferring cab service. The property tax department figure shows that many homebuyers are adopting solar power facility and availing rebate.”
Navigating congested streets, lack of parking space and cost of owning a vehicle as compared to using a cab have led residents to use mass transport.
The civic body collected data from Airports Authority of India, Indian Railways, Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC), Regional Transport Office (RTO), Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (MSEDCL) and other state and central government departments to prepare the report. The data analysis
(2015-2019) reveals that the city has maximum job generation potential because of growth in various section, including education, IT and small and medium sized businesses.
Ajay Kumar, airport director, Lohegaon airport, “The number of passengers flying from Pune airport has been consistently increasing over the last few years. One of the key reasons is the ever increasing employment opportunities in the city.