Pune: Wagholi Split Into Two Wards for PMC Elections, Residents Raise Concerns
Reported by Mubarak Ansari
Wagholi, 23rd August 2025: The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) on Friday released the draft ward structure for the upcoming municipal elections. For the first time, Wagholi residents will be able to vote in these elections following the area’s merger with PMC a few years ago.
The announcement has sparked debate among citizens, as Wagholi has witnessed rapid urbanisation over the past decade but continues to grapple with basic civic issues such as poor road connectivity, erratic water supply, and electricity shortages.
As per the draft plan, Wagholi has been divided into two separate wards. One part has been merged with Kharadi to form the Kharadi–Wagholi ward, while the remaining portion has been included in the Lohegaon–Viman Nagar ward. Citizens can raise objections to the draft structure until September 4 by visiting the local ward office, the PMC main building in Shivajinagar, or the election office at Savarkar Bhavan near Balgandharv auditorium.
Ravi Kumar, a Wagholi resident, said, “Dividing Wagholi along Nagar Road—sending one side towards Lohegaon and the other towards Wagholi—doesn’t serve the real purpose. Merging Wagholi with Kharadi is nothing but a whitewash, which will ensure Wagholi is always treated as a second-class area compared to Kharadi, which is already well-developed. Technically, Wagholi should have been defined as everything above Ubale Nagar on the Nagar Highway up to the Vitthalwadi boundary. With this division, Wagholi has not only been split geographically but also in terms of focus and attention. This is a very poor decision, and as a result, Wagholi will continue to suffer..”
However, many local representatives and housing society groups have expressed dissatisfaction with the division.
Sanjeev Patil, director of the Wagholi Housing Societies Association (WHSA), said, “Residential areas with natural continuity and shared civic infrastructure should be kept under one ward. But Wagholi, which has over 250 housing societies, has now been split between Ward 3 (Lohgaon–Wagholi) and Ward 4 (Kharadi–Wagholi). This will lead to a lack of single-point accountability. Development work will suffer because budgets and proposals will depend on decisions taken by four corporators from two separate wards. The proposed ward boundaries will have a negative impact on civic governance and basic services.”
Patil also highlighted concerns over adherence to the Maharashtra Municipal Corporations (MMC) Act. Quoting Chapter II, Clause 5, Sub-clause 3, he said ward boundaries are required to be compact, contiguous, and population-based to ensure fair representation. He also pointed out that outdated data has been used in the process.
“PMC has relied on the 2011 Census figures, which are no longer relevant. In the last 11 years, population growth in Wagholi has been evident through building permissions, water supply and waste management data, property tax records, school enrolments, and employment figures. Even the number of registered voters must be factored in when defining ward boundaries,” he added.
Residents and civic groups are expected to file formal objections before the September 4 deadline, pressing for revisions that reflect current demographics and ensure better civic accountability.
