The Pune Municipal Corporation approved a Rs 5.7796 billion (bn) fifteen-year contract to process 500 metric tonnes (t) of waste daily at the Devachi Uruli depot and allowed unauthorised overhead cables to remain temporarily for one year subject to a fee. The decision was taken by the civic body to appoint a private operator for an integrated waste facility covering about 12 acres. The approval frames the contract as an operational arrangement with a fixed base rate and annual adjustments.

The contract was awarded to Bhoomi Green Energy Envirocare LLP, which quoted Rs 772 per t, compared with a Rs 1,045 per t bid from Antony Lara Enviro Solutions Private Limited. The proposed facility will handle 300 t of wet waste and 200 t of dry waste daily and will include operation and maintenance responsibilities for the full term, with a clause allowing an extension of a further five years. The quoted rate will increase by seven per cent annually under the contract terms.

Under the new temporary overhead cable policy, telecom companies will pay Rs 0.3 mn per kilometre annually while internet and broadband firms will pay Rs 0.1 mn per kilometre, and operators will have one year to shift networks underground. The corporation will conduct a joint survey and GIS mapping of overhead cables and will require visible labelling with the service provider’s name, a 24-hour emergency contact number and a permission or QR number together with mandated colour coding. Unused cables must be removed and non-compliant networks may face cancellation of permission and civic action.

The policy also proposes a penalty of Rs 2,000 per metre for unauthorised overhead cables. The standing committee chairman Shrinath Bhimale indicated that underground cabling would improve safety and reduce visual clutter and noted that around 500 kilometre of cable-related excavation is currently under way while the corporation is planning a 750-kilometre civic internet network. Officials expect the measures to streamline city infrastructure and accelerate network upgrades.