PMC to acquire strategic land parcel to resolve traffic congestion at Katraj Chowk
To facilitate the construction of this flyover, the PMC provided the NHAI with land from the Katraj Zoo. However, the project could not move forward till a strategic land parcel was acquired
For the past couple of decades, Katraj Chowk has suffered persistent traffic congestion despite the construction of a flyover on the Katraj-Kondhwa Road near the Katraj Zoo. The reason is a privately owned plot of land which the owner, one Sanjay Gugale, has been unwilling to give up. Gugale owns around 4,104 square metres out of a total 6,200 square metres of land which the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) now looks set to acquire at a cost of ₹21.57 crores, marking the first step towards resolution of one of the oldest traffic problems in the area.
Initially, the PMC had offered Gugale transfer of development rights (TDR) as compensation but the offer was declined and Gugale filed a writ petition against the PMC. The court, in its 2005 order, instructed the PMC not to encroach upon or utilise the land unless it was acquired in accordance with the law.
Meanwhile in the 2017 development plan (DP), the PMC replaced the concept of reservation for a ‘park’ with that for a 60 metres’ road. To address the persistent traffic problem, the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) proposed a six-lane flyover, measuring 1,326 metres in length and 24.20 metres in width, with its construction beginning at the Pune-Mumbai Bypass and ending at the Kondhwa-Katraj Road.
To facilitate the construction of this flyover, the PMC provided the NHAI with land from the Katraj Zoo. However, the project could not move forward till a strategic land parcel located near the Katraj Zoo at the point where the Katraj-Kondhwa Road begins was acquired. The PMC land acquisition department then proposed acquisition of 4,104 square metres out of the total 6,200 square metres of land, marking a significant step towards the resolution of one of the oldest traffic problems in the area.
Vikas Dhakane, additional municipal commissioner of the PMC, said, “This long pending issue has finally been resolved. Some of the pillars for the six-lane flyover have been planned on the Gugale plot. Hence, we have decided to acquire the land by offering cash compensation as per the law. This will help resolve the traffic problem.”
Digambar Banger, deputy engineer of the land acquisition department, said, “The proposal has been presented to the standing committee for approval. We have calculated the compensation amount according to the new land acquisition law passed in 2013. It is ₹21.57 crores.”
Local resident Pandurang Chopade said, “We are facing severe traffic congestion at Katraj Chowk. It is a major intersection with heavy traffic and during peak hours, we often have to wait for more than 15 to 20 minutes to cross the chowk.”
With the PMC’s proactive measures to acquire the land and initiate construction of the flyover, residents are hopeful that the long-standing traffic problems at Katraj Chowk will finally be resolved.
