ZP''s administrative building proposal on backburner

>Aurangabad, Sept 24:
The proposal of Zilla Parishad (ZP) administrative building construction is on the backburner for many years.
According to details, the then Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh had performed ‘Bhoomipujan’ of the building on September 17, 2000. The cost of the project Rs 16 crore two decades ago. A total of 10 acres of land belonging to the Education Department was transferred to the Rural Development Department for the proposal which has a plan of 116 shops from Nirala Bazaar to the ZP office with the administrative building. The contract of the designing blueprint of shops was given to Pune’s prominent architecture agency. With the change in guard in ZP, the matter of changing the architecture agency reached the court. The agency collected Rs 50 lakh from ZP.
The then ZP president Harishchandra Laghane told this newspaper that the proposal of the building is on the backburner since 2000. Officers from the Sub-divisional office of the Construction Department of ZP said that as the case related to the land was sub-judice, so construction was not done.
It was a ‘built, operate and transfer (BBOT) project and the cost was Rs 16 crore in 2020.
Today, the expenses have increased four times and ZP revised the proposal with the cost of Rs 54.62 crore. After the nod of superintending engineer and chief engineer, ZP chief executive officer (CEO) Dr Mangesh Gondavale will send Rs 54.62 crore proposal to the Rural Development Department soon for the approval.
The proposal also has the development of a four-storey building after demolishing District Rural Development Agency''s existing building which is located near Government Medical College and Hospital. There is a question over getting funds to the proposal considering the government’s current financial position due to Novel coronavirus.
An engineer from Construction Department Bendre said that the administration had submitted Rs 38 crore administrative building proposal in 2017 for the approval.
“The process of submitting the proposal after removing shortcomings is underway. The existing ZP building is in dilapidated condition and its roof was leaking at many places posing a threat to the life of staff,” he said. Chairman of Building and Construction Committee Kishor Balande said that efforts would be made to get approval for the administrative building construction proposal.
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