The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) signed an MOU with Pune City Connect (PCC) on November 9, 2015. Being an industry-led platform, Pune City Connect’s objective is to institutionalize a working partnership between the industry and the Pune Municipal Corporation, and this MOU is a significant step towards the same.
Speaking on the occasion,Kunal Kumar, the Municipal Commissioner, PMC, said – “We are emerging from an age of competitiveness to an era of collaboration, and cities today have a unique opportunity to combine forces in order to bring about sustainable development. In PCC, we have found a perfect partner to help us mobilize and effect various city-centric development initiatives in collaboration with corporates. I urge corporate houses to come forward and contribute to this movement in order to make it impactful and inclusive,”
The Mayor of Pune, Shri DattatrayaDhankawade, said – ”Collaborative partnerships between the government and corporates are a welcome development and we look forward to this collaboration making Pune the best city in the country”.
Commenting on the occasion, Dr. Ganesh Natarajan, Chairman of PCC said – “In my experience at various corporate, industry and social forums be it Zensar Foundation, NASSCOM Foundation or Social Venture Partners, I have found corporates more than willing to go an extra mile in order to facilitate large scale and sustainable impact through their Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives. PCC will work as an extension of both PMC and Corporate houses, and be an interface between the two so that CSR monies and intime can be streamlined towards development areas that are in sync with PMCs needs.”
Ms. Ruchi Mathur, CEO, Pune City Connect Said – “Collaborative work groups are fast becoming the new normal, and it is time that the CSR space harnesses the potential of collective action. More and more studies show that for social transformation to happen, collective action is not just preferable, but essential. The objective is to enable a city-wide movement comprising citizens, governance and corporates, towards focused goals. Once this is in place, nothing can stand in the way of the desired impact being achieved!”
The Pune City Connect initiative aims to leverage the collective efforts of Pune’s local government, corporate and citizens to bring about a visible change across the city in the key areas of Quality Education, Cleanliness, Digital Literacy, Tourism and e-Governance. Corporates present in Pune are noticeably active in these CSR areas in their individual capacities. Synergizing these efforts, cross-learning through best practices and co-planning activities can lead to greater and sustained impact. This MOU provides the formal structure and outline to kick-start activities.