Over 1,400 free cycles meant for poor students rotting in PCMC godown

As many as 1,464 bicycles meant for free distribution to students are lying in the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation godowns for nearly a year now as the students for whom they are meant have shown no interest in having them collected.

The civic administration is now planning to allocate these bicycles to students of the 2016-17 academic year.

Pravin Ashtekar, assistant commissioner of store department, said, “There are bicycles which were not distributed last year.We have contacted the beneficiaries many times through telephones and letters but have failed to get any response from them.” If the students are not interested then what we can do, he asked.

According to civic officials, the students who have not picked up their free bicycles are more interested in motorised two wheelers rather than the free bicycles.

Under the backward classes welfare scheme of the municipal corporation and women and child welfare scheme, free cycles are distributed every year to students of classes VI to XII for the purpose of commuting to their schools and colleges. A total of 3,641 bicycles were purchased during 2012-13 and 2014-15 under the scheme and of these, 2,992 bicycles were distributed.

While 649 cycles did not find takers, another, 815 cycles under the women and child development scheme were also left over in the godowns, registering a total of 1,464 bicycles from both the schemes which are stacked up in the Nehru nagar godown.

Bicycles are provided free of cost to students living at a distance from the school. However, with changing times, not all students are showing interest in the free bicycles. As a result, the bicycles end up lying in the godowns. According to officials, some of the bicycles have suffered damage and are not in a condition to be distributed to the students.