Pune municipal recruitment has come under scrutiny after the civic administration proposed appointing 45 former assistant encroachment inspectors on consolidated remuneration, despite an earlier decision to discontinue their services and a previous official objection to absorbing them through a special arrangement.
The proposal has been sent to the Pune Municipal Corporation’s general administration department. Deputy Commissioner of the Encroachment Removal Department Somnath Bankar said the appointments were being considered because the city’s expanded limits had created a need for additional field staff. However, no final decision has been taken on the proposal.
The 45 workers had earlier been engaged on consolidated remuneration but were removed from service about three years ago. In 2022, the civic body recruited 100 assistant encroachment inspectors to strengthen enforcement against illegal structures and roadside occupations. The earlier staff were discontinued during that process.
Pune’s municipal limits expanded after 32 villages were included in the corporation area, taking the city’s jurisdiction to about 484 square kilometres, according to the report. The civic administration has cited a rise in roadside encroachments, unauthorised stalls and temporary structures in the newly included areas. These occupations have reduced pedestrian space and contributed to traffic congestion in several locations, particularly during evening hours.
The current proposal has also received a recommendation from Standing Committee chairperson Shrinath Bhimale. The report said the proposal is intended to appoint the 45 former workers on a consolidated-pay basis, but it did not establish that the former employees would be selected automatically or that the proposal had received administrative approval.
The issue had previously reached the question of permanent absorption. A proposal was earlier considered to regularise the workers as a one-time special case, after which the state Urban Development Department sought the municipal corporation’s opinion. Then-Additional Commissioner Prithviraj B.P. reportedly informed the department that bringing people into municipal service through what he described as a backdoor route would not be justified.
Under the normal process for appointing staff on consolidated remuneration, the civic body is expected to issue a public advertisement, invite applications, scrutinise candidates and publish lists of eligible and ineligible applicants. The terms and conditions are also expected to be comprehensive and not designed to benefit a specific group. Such appointments are generally made for a limited period of about six months, according to the report.
Bankar said the proposal for appointing 45 assistant encroachment inspectors had been forwarded to the general administration department to provide adequate manpower after the expansion of the city’s boundaries. General Administration Deputy Commissioner Kishori Shinde said the file had been received but had not yet been examined and that further information would be provided after its review.
The proposal therefore remains at the file-review stage. Its next step will depend on the general administration department’s examination of the recruitment method, eligibility conditions and the earlier objections concerning the reappointment of the former staff.
