The process of development and progress is a never-ending one. For a city like Pune, a uniform and ‘beneficial for all’ urban development is a necessity.

1. Pune Urban Development Conclave 2022
The process of development and progress is a never ending one. For a city like Pune, a uniform
and ‘beneficial for all’ urban development is a necessity. To address concerns related to such
urban planning, Surendra Pathare organised the Pune Urban Development Conclave 2022 on
22nd July. The conference was organised on the occasion of the birthday of Deputy Chief Minister
and visionary leader Devendra Fadnavis.
The conference received phenomenal response from the participants and witnessed healthy
discussions and dialogue around urban planning of Pune from a range of industry experts. The
primary themes of this conclave included challenges and opportunities regarding policy making,
planning and implementation and proposed innovative solutions.
The conference began with City President of BJP Jagdish Mulik, MLA Siddharth Shirole and
Secretary Rajesh Panday who inaugurated the program with Saraswati Pujan. This was followed
by Surendra’s addresses where he discussed the purpose of the conclave. He explained that
involving citizens in the process of urban development is necessary. He further stated that the
aim of the conference was to churn out the next and best practices for modern urban
development with a more positive approach towards reinventing Pune.
In his address, Chief Guest Jagdish Mulik said that urban development needs to grow from just
water, road, electricity and drainage. “Pune city has the potential to create a different identity on
the global platform as the most progressive city,” he added in his address. Siddharth Shirole also
commented on how Pune needs collaborative efforts for growth. He further suggested that
programs such as improved public transport like EV, and slum rehabilitation can be implemented
in Pune city so that Pune not only achieves higher urbanisation but also higher happiness index.
Rajesh Panday also shared his thoughts on the topic stating that such conclaves should be
encouraged to give a direction to development. Pune is also known as a cultural, educational and
IT hub in India, so it needs visionary thoughts to support urbanisation without losing its identity.
The panel in the conclave consisted of visionaries and leaders with expertise in their industry and
the discussion was carried out in two sessions. The first panel discussion began with Prof. Archana
Thosar, Professor and Dean, Research and Development at COEP. She explained how the Centre
of Excellence, established in partnership with PMPML has constructed IoT based solutions,
integration of renewable energy, programs for public transport and capacity building through
technical and behavioural training of the staff. Some of their solutions such as automatic ticketing
system and route optimisation are already implemented in Pune.

2. Mandar Deogaonkar, President of BJP Infrastructure Cell then led the discussion panning towards
how initial ideas can be transformed into deliverables. He further added how the urban planning
is different according to different areas and positive response received from PMC in the
urbanisation of Pune. Moreover, he also talked about the ‘Mula-Mutha Sushobhikaran River
Project- well known as Riverfront Development Project.
Aditya Javdekar, Chief Executive Director at VJ Developers steered the conversation further by
stating, ”Problems in the suburbs are the birthplace for future problems in urban areas.” He
emphasises the need for public private partnership to solve problems like illegal construction,
transportation problems in suburban areas. He also added that Migration is the powerhouse of
Pune economy so the rate of development should be increased up to the rate of migration so that
development would not lag behind infrastructure. Indraneel Chitale, Managing Partner, Chitale
Bandhu Mitahaiwale talked about a significant topic that is not much talked about when it comes
to urbanisation. He mentioned that 30% of the GDP of India comes from MSME, small and
medium sized enterprises. If the urbanisation of Pune is done in an efficient manner, it will be
beneficial for supporting the growth of such MSME and the infrastructure creation cost and land
acquisition cost will not be higher. The panel further discussed the environment and healthcare
system and its relation with urban planning.
The second panel was focused on the role of media in the process of urbanisation from
participation, communication to collaboration. The panel had editors of various reputed
newspapers in Pune namely Samrat Phadnis, Editor at Daily Sakal, Sanjay Awate, Editor at Daily
Lokmat, Shridhar Loni, Resident Editor at Daily Maharashtra Times, and Sunil Mali, Resident Editor
at Daily Pudhari. When describing what progress is, Shridhar Loni said that true progress is where
basic necessities are provided to the citizens along with opportunities to prosper, & of education
and healthcare. Sunjay awate on the other hand explained how Pune has always been the
epitome of progress since independence. However, Pune might be losing its pace of development
in the past few decades. Sunil Mali emphasised that progress and regional plans for Pune were
laid out; however they were never implemented efficiently. Thus he urged that for effective urban
development, plans like satellite township can be applied to inclusive all the economic classes in
urbanisation. Samrat Phadnis when talking about media stated that media is a conduit for activism
for city progress.
The conclave hosted some thought-provoking discussions and concepts that educated not just
the audience but also all the dignitaries present on the platform from different industries.
Everyone supported the aim and purpose of the conclave, stating that they are looking forward
to more politicians like Surendra Pathare to take such initiatives towards urban development.
Moreover, the intellectual dialogue inspired in the conclave has helped in giving a levelled
direction to the urban planning of Pune.
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