Snapshot
Maharashtra government allowed MSRDC to raise over Rs 11,000 crore for land acquisition from 83 villages for Pune Ring Road.
Officials expect that the contractor will be appointed by January and work will commence in April 2023.
In a couple of years, Pune may get respite from its rapidly increasing traffic with the local state highway authorities hoping to complete the much anticipated Pune Ring Road project by December 2025.
The 170 km long Pune ring road would enable vehicles from different parts of the state to pass through the city without entering its arterial roads, thus helping reduce traffic congestion.
It will be a six-lane express highway (with expandable provisions) with a vehicle speed limit of 120 kilometres per hour. The estimated construction cost (without including the land acquisition cost) is approximately Rs 17,412 crore.
Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) officials told The Times of India that the Pune ring road project will be allocated nearly Rs 11,000 crore for land acquisition from 83 villages.
Recently, the Maharashtra cabinet allowed MSRDC to raise over Rs 35,000 crore as loan to pay compensation for acquiring land for various projects. Among this, Rs 11,000 crore is allotted for Pune Ring Road.
Officials expect that the allotment of finance would expedite the land acquisition process and would facilitate timely completion of the project.
An official told ToI that the contractor will be appointed by January and work will commence in April 2023.
Need for Pune Ring Road
Pune district with a population of 94 lakh (2011 census) is the most populous district in Maharashtra.
Pune is at the junction of four major state and national highways from which heavy outbound traffic passes through each day.
Also, traffic in and around Pune City has been increasing at a high rate due to rapid economic development of the region.
The proposed project will ensure the smooth flow of traffic, which reduces the emission load and noise level.
Smooth and fast-moving traffic will cause lower emission loads thereby reducing pollution levels.
The indirect benefits include development of less expensive areas with residential and commercial properties in order to take advantage of improved speed and reliability in the transportation system.
Alignment of Pune Ring Road
The project is divided in three packages i.e, Eastern Alignment (Part-1), Eastern Alignment (Part-2) and Western Alignment.
38.3 km long Eastern Alignment (Part-1) starts from Urse and ends at Solu. 66.5 km long Eastern Alignment (Part-2) starts from Solu and ends at Varve (Kelawade) near Satara highway.
The 68.8 km long Western Alignment starts from Urse Village and ends at Varve (Kelwade) on Satara road Via Parandwadi, Paud road, Mula road, Mutha road.