Pune: NCP-SP Demands Scrapping Of PMC’s Water Hyacinth Tender; Supriya Sule Targets Govt Over Potholes

On August 17, 2026, the National Congress Party and the Shiv Sena staged a protest outside the Pune Municipal Corporation headquarters in response to the civic body's tender for removing water hyacinth from city water bodies. The protesters demanded the scrapping of the tender and immediate action to fix Pune's pothole-ridden roads.

Supriya Sule, the NCP-SP Working President and Baramati MP, criticized the government for wasting public money on repeated removal drives of the aquatic weed, suggesting that recent rains had already washed away a significant amount of the weed. The protesters questioned why the civic body was spending public funds on repeated removals instead of addressing the root cause of the problem.

Water hyacinth, or jalparni, is an invasive aquatic weed that can obstruct water movement, reduce dissolved oxygen, and contribute to ecological issues such as mosquito breeding. The Pune Municipal Corporation has been undertaking mechanical removal of the weed from the Mula-Mutha river and city lakes since December 2025, with a tender valued at ₹74.99 lakh for such removal.