PUNE: The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) and 100 Resilient Cities, pioneered by the Rockefeller Foundation (100RC) unveiled Resilient Pune, a comprehensive roadmap to promote resilience in one of India’s most progressive cities in Pune on Friday. Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) and Rockefeller have appealed the private sector to support four pilot projects for the development of city.
According to PMC and Rockefeller Foundation, private sector participation will be critical in implementing the actions laid out in Resilient Pune. So, the private sector should present partnership opportunities to support pilot projects around four key themes viz. environment and climate action; skills development; mobility and integrated growth; and governance and citizen engagement.
Speaking at the event, Municipal Commissioner Saurabh Rao said, “Pune has witnessed rapid growth over the past decade and the character of the city has transformed. And while we have maintained our progressive and innovative nature, we must continue to work to ensure livability and prosperity of the city. Therefore, with the strategy of Resilient Pune, we are seeking to streamline resilience building into city initiatives and services. This strategy clearly reflects our challenges and maps a path to thrive while building Pune into the global city it is determined to be.”
Associate Director, Asia Pacific,100 Resilient Cities, Saurabh Gaidhani said, “As Pune undergoes rapid population and economic growth, it must ensure structures are in place to tackle its most pervasive shocks and stresses brought about by urbanisation, globalisation and climate change. With the release of this strategy, Pune city has an opportunity to demonstrate a best practice approach to urbanisation and can be a benchmark to follow for all the cities in India and South Asia.
A result of one and a half years of joint effort and extensive consultations between the Steering Committee, Pune Resilience Office, and an extensive list of community, public and private sector stakeholders, Resilient Pune lays a set of initiatives to address challenges included uncontrolled growth, inadequate access to mobility, under-employment among youths, inward migration and stressed urban environment. The strategy details actions across three pillars viz. urban growth, urban environment and urban economy, to prepare the city for an uncertain future.
