MSIDC invites fresh bids for elevated, six-lane Pune-Shirur Road project

After cancellation of the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) project, the Maharashtra State Infrastructure Development Corporation (MSIDC) has called for fresh bids to construct an elevated, six-lane highway corridor to improve the existing road from Pune to Shirur. This 53.40 km project, with an estimated cost of ₹5,993 crore, will be executed on a DBFOT (design, build, finance, operate, and transfer) basis.

In September, the state cabinet approved the plan to improve the Pune to Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar national highway. The project included a double flyover on the Pune to Shirur highway, and a Shirur to Nagar bypass road connecting Pune to the Samruddhi Highway. The public works department (PWD), Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority (PMRDA), and National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) were tasked with resolving the pothole problem on the Pune to Shirur section of Nagar Road.

Initially, a 25 km continuous flyover was proposed for the Pune to Shikrapur section. Plans were also made to build smaller flyovers to work around the pothole-prone areas. The NHAI prepared a detailed project report (DPR) and in February 2024, it floated a tender for ₹7,547.60 crore in three phases. However, just as the project was about to start, the tender process was cancelled.

In February, a cabinet meeting chaired by chief minister Eknath Shinde decided to convert the 53 km Pune to Shirur stretch of the Pune to Shirur to Nagar to Chatrapati Sambhaji Nagar highway into a six-lane road. It was announced that the work would be awarded to the MSIDC.

Thereafter, the Government of India, through the ministry of road transport and highways, signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Government of Maharashtra, represented by the PWD, on March 8, 2024, and established the MSIDC of the state government. The MSIDC officially got its first project namely an elevated, six-lane road from Pune to Shirur. In December, the MSIDC issued a new RFP (request for proposal) tender for this project in which the project cost was shown as ₹5,993 crores.

Brijesh Dixit, managing director of MSIDC, said, “The project will be implemented under the public-private partnership (PPP) model. Although the project cost has been revised, the government will not bear any expense. Since the road will utilise the existing Pune to Shirur highway, land acquisition will be minimal. We are proceeding with the earlier DPR prepared by the NHAI.”

The MSIDC on behalf of the project special vehicle (SPV) is issuing a request for proposal (RFP) to invite tenders from contractors and subcontractors. The work involves construction, development, operation, and maintenance of the project highway under the PPP model on a DBFOT (design, build, finance, operate, and transfer) basis. The project SPV will sign agreements with the selected contractors for the project. The MSIDC has stated that the project will be completed within three years after the work order is issued.