Nagpur: A dedicated Vidarbha Bhavan is being planned in Navi Mumbai’s Kharghar area, with the state govt setting the ball rolling for allotment of nearly two acres for the project.Revenue minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule, during a meeting on Thursday, directed Raigad district collector and CIDCO managing director to submit a proposal to the state govt regarding availability of a two-acre plot in Kharghar for the project.The proposal has been pursued by Nagpur MLA Pravin Datke, who had raised the demand with the chief minister as well as Bawankule during the winter session of the state legislature. Datke had sought land in the Kharghar-Panvel belt and also suggested that CSR funding could be explored for construction of the facility, if required.The proposed Vidarbha Bhavan is envisaged as more than a community hall. According to those pursuing the project, it could function as a common centre for social, cultural and educational activities, while also offering temporary accommodation facilities to people travelling from Vidarbha to Navi Mumbai for medical, educational, official or other work.Datke said the sizeable Vidarbha-origin population in the region needed a dedicated space where families could gather, organise community programmes and stay connected with their cultural roots. He urged govt to expedite the land-allotment process and take the proposal forward positively.Bawankule said the proposed facility would prove useful for people from Vidarbha and asked the concerned authorities to initiate the necessary process by placing details of suitable land before govt.Representatives informed govt that Vidarbha Seva Sahayog Foundation has already been conducting various programmes for residents originally from Vidarbha and now settled across Navi Mumbai, Kharghar and Panvel. Once the proposal reaches the state, a final decision on allotment and the project’s implementation framework is expected to follow.
