New DP comprises 244 heritage sites

With the new Development Plan (DP) taking shape, the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has incorporated 244 heritage sites to the list.

With the civic body ready to shoulder part of the responsibility of conserving and preserving historic sites, private owners of heritage sites stand to benefit the most, as the municipality will provide 50 per cent of the costs incurred in restoration and preservation.

Historical decision: Sham Dhavle, executive engineer of PMC's Heritage Cell, Mayor Vaishali Bankar and Municipal Commissioner Mahesh Pathak release a new list of heritage structures on the occasion of International Seminar on Economics of Heritage yesterday. The PMC also signed an MOU with Indian Heritage Cities Network

Pride of the city
"All 244 heritage sites are the pride of the city, and they need to be conserved and preserved as socio-cultural assets. As per the heritage rules, PMC can spend 50 per cent on conservation and preservation of privately owned sites.

The owners will also get some incentives by way of property taxes and other benefits," said Municipal Commissioner Mahesh Pathak. "PMC has increased its budget to Rs 5 crore for conservation of heritage sites in the city in comparison to its earlier budget of 3.5 crore."

Pathak and city Mayor Vaishali Bankar also formally unveiled three volumes devoted to Grade I, II and III historically important heritage sites in the city during the inauguration of the international seminar on ‘Economics of Heritage' yesterday.

MOU signed
PMC also signed a MOU with the national body of Indian Heritage Cities Network (IHCN) at the seminar organised in collaboration with France-UNESCO cooperation agreement andUnited Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation.

"By signing the MOU with IHCN, PMC has become part of the 25 heritage cities in India, and has thus been linked with the global heritage network. We can now avail free consultations from experts in future, " said Pathak.

"While discussing the DP in the municipal General Body meeting, we are trying to preserve the culture and historic value of the city," said Mayor Bankar.

K S Raykar, director, IHCN, said, "Pune is a heaven for heritage sites and the city will generate employment. IHCN will give technical support as well as help in increasing heritage walks in the city as a permanent tourist activity."u00a0

IHCN in India
Member cities: Hyderabad, Indore, Jabalpur, Mysore, Madurai, Ujjain, Jaipur, Varanasi, Ahmadabad, Bhopal, Chandigarh, Cochin, Gwalior, Srinagar, Maheshwar, Udaipur, Burhanpur, Bharatpur, Chamba, Leh and Pune u00a0

PMC Heritage Sites
Grade I: 77
Grade II: 82
Grade III: 85
Total: 244u00a0