Maha-Metro to alter route near Agha Khan Palace in Pune, project cost to increase by ₹50 crore

The Pune municipal corporation (PMC) and Maharashtra metro rail corporation (Maha-Metro) has decided to change the alignment of the metro project on the Ahmednagar road to protect the Aga Khan Palace as per National Monument’s Authority (NMA). So now the project cost would increase by ₹50 crore for civil work and the length of the corridor would be increased by 900 meters.

Metro officials Atul Gadgil and Prakash Waghmare briefed the media persons regarding the decision on Friday. “There are changes in the metro corridor near Aga Khan Palace and the route length would now increase by 900 metres,” confirmed metro officials. The PMC is yet to give final approval for the planned route.

Meanwhile, municipal commissioner Saurabh Rao had recently confirmed to media persons that the PMC would give nod to the alignment changes suggested by Maha-Metro and will officially communicate for the same soon.

Waghmare said, “The route alignment would change from Gunjan Talkies and it will till Kalyaninagar and rest of the route will be the same.” Also, he added, that as the metro route will change now the proposal of erecting multi-level flyover in this stretch would get scrapped.

Waghmare said, “As the route length is increasing by 900 metres only civil work cost will increase by 50 crores and other costs were different.”

Earlier Metro corridor in between Vanaz to Ramwadi was passing through Aga Khan palace on Ahmednagar road as it was passing through the protected monument.

In September, the NMA, while citing the ancient monuments and archaeological sites and remains Act of 1958, objected to the proposed metro work near Aga Khan Palace, built in 1892 by Sultan Muhammed Shah Aga Khan II. During the freedom struggle, the palace was closely associated with the movement as it served as a prison for Mahatma Gandhi. According to NMA, the metro route falls within the prohibitory area as per the ancient monuments and archaeological sites and remains Act of 1958, which was amended in 2010, no construction of any kind is allowed in a prohibited area within 100 metres of a nationally protected monument.