Nagpur: Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) has suspended assistant commissioner Ghanshyam Pendhre, currently posted in Gandhibagh Zone, pending further orders over alleged misconduct and irregularities.NMC commissioner Vipin Itankar issued the suspension order on Tuesday under Rule 4(1) of the Maharashtra Civil Services (Discipline and Appeal) Rules, 1979. As per the order, Pendhre’s suspension is effective immediately. During the suspension period, his headquarters will be the office of the assistant commissioner, General Administration Department, at NMC’s new administrative building. He has been directed not to leave the headquarters without prior permission.The order also bars Pendhre from taking up any private or semi-govt employment or engaging in private business during the suspension period. He will be entitled to a subsistence allowance as per the Maharashtra Civil Services (Joining Time, Foreign Service and Payments during Suspension, Dismissal and Removal) Rules, 1981.The NMC’s administration branch has been asked to initiate departmental inquiry proceedings and submit the necessary documents, including the charge-sheet and annexures, within seven days.The order has been marked to senior civic officials, including the additional commissioner, the deputy commissioner of the General Administration Department, the chief accounts and finance officer, the legal officer, and other officials concerned with the inquiry.The suspension order does not specify the nature of the alleged misconduct or irregularities. Details are expected to emerge during the departmental inquiry.Pendhre’s suspension comes at a time when the NMC is facing a shortage of assistant commissioners. Two deputy municipal commissioners — Ashok Gharate and Ganesh Rathod — along with six superintendents, are currently holding additional charge of assistant commissioners, while only two zones have full-fledged assistant commissioners of their own.Rathod, deputy commissioner (garden), is also handling Ashi Nagar Zone, requiring him to divide his time between the Garden Department and the zone. Similarly, Gharate is looking after both Mangalwari Zone and the Fire Department.In another instance of additional charge, Hanuman Nagar Zone assistant commissioner Narendra Bawankar is also serving as accounts officer in the NMC’s Accounts and Finance Department.
