Pune: The BJP and NCP on Monday came together during the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC)’s general body meeting to support the proposed convention centre, Bharat Mandampam, across 48acres in Lohegaon.The Congress opposed the proposal and demanded a change in the centre’s location. The party cited traffic problems and said the particular area in Lohegaon should not be considered. Members also pointed out that some plots on the 48acre land are reserved for gardens, school, hospital and other facilities.Citizens groups have already opposed the allotment of land for the centre by removing public reservations. The objections were raised during a hearing conducted in Jan 2026.Meanwhile, leader of the house in PMC Ganesh Bidkar assured the general body that no public reservations would be eliminated while executing the Bharat Mandapam project. “We will ensure that reservations are fully executed. Parking and gardens will be provided within the convention centre, while school and hospital will be developed in the vicinity. We will tell the administration toprepare a plan to execute the reservations,” he said. The proposal was approved on Monday and will now be sent to thestate govt for furtherconsideration.The state govt has proposed the project of the convention centre to be developed on the lines of Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi. Bidkar said Lohegaon was selected due to its proximity to the airport. The centre will be able host programmes with more than 30,000 people in attendance, though the designing and other details would be finalised by the state govt.Congress party members, including Arvind Shinde and Ramchandra Kadam, said the proposal should be scrapped as it is being implemented by removing reservations meant for citizens. Lohegaon is a fast developing neighbourhood and citizens already face a lot of problems, including traffic congestion. They said the party was not opposed to the Bharat Mandapam project, the objections were only regarding the location. Shinde and Kadam also highlighted that citizens and various civic departments had also protested against the removal of reservations and the specified location.A voting was held on the issue and, despite Congress’s objections, the proposal was approved by a majority with BJP and NCP standing in support.Leader of opposition and NCP leader Nilesh Nikam said the administration should give an assurance that all reservations scrapped for the centre would be implemented in nearby areas.
