Veteran Activist Shyamala Desai Urges Pune Voters to Demand Ward-Specific Promises
As Pune heads into local body elections, the city's civic failures are glaringly evident. Newly constructed roads get dug up within months. Garbage piles up despite multiple policies. Public spaces remain neglected. Existing infrastructure suffers from poor management.
For over thirty-five years, senior civic activist Shyamala Desai has consistently identified the root cause. She points to fragmented planning and a severe lack of accountability within the system.
A Lifelong Commitment to Civic Issues
Shyamala Desai's journey with civic engagement started in 1975. She focused on solid waste management long before it became a mainstream topic. Working alongside the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC), she helped create systems for dry waste segregation. She promoted recycling and encouraged active citizen participation.
Today, as president of the National Society for Clean Cities, she maintains a clear stance. "We don't need more policies," Desai states firmly. "We need proper monitoring and consistent follow-through."
The Critical Need for Coordinated Planning
One of Desai's primary concerns remains unaddressed. She highlights the absence of a Central Development Committee within the PMC. "Various departments function in complete isolation," she explains. "Roads, sewage, solid waste, environment, fire, zoning, electricity, gas, and communication all work separately."
She proposes a simple yet effective solution. Before approving any new road project, all relevant departments should coordinate. They must provide a written commitment. This commitment would ensure the road remains undug for at least one full year.
Desai also suggests a practical measure adopted by other progressive cities. "When PMC builds or widens roads, why not lay three- or four-inch plastic conduits underneath?" she asks. These conduits could later carry electric lines, communication cables, or gas lines. This approach would eliminate the need for constant road digging.
She notes that resistance often comes from departments unwilling to share budgets or authority. This siloed mentality hampers efficient urban development.
Grassroots Work and Community Engagement
Beyond systemic issues, Desai has worked extensively at the neighborhood level. She has been active in PMC's mohalla committees. These committees enable residents to report local problems directly.
As secretary of the Model Colony Parisar Sudharna Samitee, she has repeatedly raised critical concerns. Her focus includes illegal constructions, encroachments, road safety violations, and misuse of public spaces. Her method relies on thorough documentation, regular site inspections, and persistent follow-ups.
Underutilized Civic Assets and Management Gaps
Desai draws attention to Pune's vast but poorly managed civic assets. "This is a metro city with more than sixty crematoriums," she says. "It has nearly seventy vegetable markets, over three hundred municipal schools, two hundred-plus gardens and playgrounds, and close to eighty swimming pools."
"The infrastructure already exists," she emphasizes. "What's missing is effective management, proper upkeep, and genuine accountability."
Under her guidance, citizens successfully helped restore forty-nine crematoriums. She notes this work could have been executed more efficiently by elected representatives.
A Clear Message for Voters and Candidates
With elections approaching, Desai offers clear guidance for voters. She stresses that candidates must be held accountable for specific, deliverable promises.
"Candidates cannot simply copy someone else's agenda," she asserts. "Each ward has completely different needs. One area might require better drainage. Another might need improved markets or schools."
Her advice to voters is straightforward and powerful. "Voters must ask what a candidate will actually complete in their ward. They should not be swayed by what merely sounds good on a poster."
The Path Forward for Pune
Shyamala Desai's decades of engagement reveal a simple truth. Pune's problems are not impossible to solve. However, progress requires two key elements.
First, there must be better coordination within the Pune Municipal Corporation. Second, citizens need to be well-informed and consistently demanding.
Without these, political promises will continue to replace real progress. As voters evaluate election rhetoric, Desai's work stands as a vital reminder. Cities improve not through grand announcements. They improve through meticulous planning, sustained public pressure, and unwavering persistence.
