“Prepare strong proposals and forward them to the state govt. There will be no shortage of support for Nagpur’s development,” Bawankule said, while congratulating Thakre on becoming the city’s 55th Mayor. He urged newly elected corporators to remain loyal to voters and work with a long-term vision, calling upon them to take a collective resolve to make Nagpur a ‘developed city by 2047′.Bawankule stressed that civic planning must take into account population growth, future infrastructure needs, and quality public services, including water supply, sanitation, education and healthcare. He said Nagpur was steadily moving forward on the development path and must now accelerate work through coordination between elected representatives and the administration.Following the ceremony, mayor Thakre, deputy mayor Hathibed and ruling party leader Borkar formally assumed charge at the NMC headquarters. Thakre said the mayoral post brings not just honour but a major responsibility towards citizens. “The trust shown by people through the election will not be betrayed. Under the guidance of CM Devendra Fadnavis and Union minister Nitin Gadkari, we will strive to give Nagpur new dimensions of development,” she said.Ruling party leader Narendra Borkar said the city’s development would be pursued through coordination with office-bearers and the civic administration, ensuring smoother decision-making and execution of projects.The event was attended by MLAs Krishna Khopde and Mohan Mate, former Rajya Sabha MP Ajay Sancheti, former mayors Archana Dehankar and Maya Ivnate, city BJP president and former mayor Dayashankar Tiwari, former legislators Anil Sole, Vikas Kumbhare and Dr Milind Mane, former standing committee chairman Pintu Zalke, and others. Additional municipal commissioners Vasumana Pant and Vaishnavi B, and deputy commissioner Nirbhay Jain felicitated the office-bearers.With a clear assurance from the state govt and a new civic leadership in place, expectations are high that Nagpur’s long-pending civic challenges will now be addressed with urgency.Meanwhile, senior Congress corporator Sanjay Mahakalkar took charge as Leader of the Opposition in the NMC. The ceremony at the NMC headquarters was attended by city Congress president and MLA Vikas Thakre, MLC Abhijit Wanjari, and Shiv Sena (UBT) group leader Kishor Kumeriya, along with several Congress corporators Shailesh Pandey, Abhijeet Jha and party workers, signalling coordinated Opposition positioning in the civic body.
