Chandani chowk flyover: Pune civic body to spend ₹185 cr for land acquisition
Of the 14 hectares required for the Chandani chowk flyover project, 5.5 hectares has been acquired while 8.5 hectares is still to be acquired.
More than a year after Union minister for road transport and highways Nitin Gadkari laid the foundation stone for the proposed flyover at Chandani chowk, the standing committee of the Pune municipal corporation (PMC) has finally approved to provide ₹185 crore for land acquisition for the project.
Recently, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis had assured that the state government would bear the land acquisition cost of the Chandani chowk flyover project following reports of delay in starting the work. However, as the state government requires some time to hand over this amount, the PMC has now decided to bear the cost for acquiring land.
The state government will hand over this amount in various stages and hence, municipal commissioner Saurabh Rao requested the standing committee to give money for land acquisition and start work of the multilevel flyover.
Of the 14 hectares required for the Chandani chowk flyover project, 5.5 hectares has been acquired while 8.5 hectares is still to be acquired. The national highway authority of India (NHAI) has made it clear that it won’t start the project unless 80 per cent of the land is acquired.
During his visit to the city in June, Gadkari had said that he is asking the Pune civic body to expedite the land acquisition process. The proposed flyover is key to de-congest Pune’s entry and exit point in the western areas. The NHAI has already released the work order for the project and the contract has been awarded to a private firm.
Commissioner Rao said that as the chief minister had agreed to give money for the land acquisition process, PMC will get this money back. Considering this, the standing committee approved the decision to hand over ₹185 core for the land acquisition process.