PM Modi lays foundation stone of Pune’s Hinjewadi-Shivajinagar Metro line

Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone for the third line of the Pune Metro rail project from Hinjewadi to Shivajinagar on Tuesday along with Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis.

The Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority (PMRDA) is developing the 23.4-km line with 23 stations between Hinjewadi to Shivajinagar and it will be the first Metro based on a public-private partnership (PPP) after the new Metro policy was introduced by the central government in 2016.

The stretch will connect the prominent IT hub at Hinjewadi with Shivajinagar where two other Metro lines will also join. This line will be one of the fastest mega projects in the city which has been being planned and executed in three years.

The ground-breaking ceremony for the third Metro line was conducted by Prime Minister Modi at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Sports complex at Balewadi.

The project will be jointly executed by Tata Realty Infra and Siemens at a cost of ₹8,313 crore. The state government will release 13.83 acres (5.60 hectares) of land in Balewadi as viability gap funding to contractors for commercial development.

Tata Realty and Siemens will have the authority to use the land for commercial purpose and this will offset the need for direct funding from the state and the centre.

PMRDA became functional in March 2015, after which planning for the Metro corridor began with an approval from the Prime Minister. The line was announced by Fadnavis at an event of the builders’ association in the city.

Fadnavis said whenever he met international delegates within or outside the country, they raised the issue of dense traffic at Hinjewadi. Therefore the Maharashtra chief minister felt the need to sort out the traffic situation in the city.

Mahesh Zagade, PMRDA chief executive officer, was appointed by the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) to prepare the Detailed Project Report (DPR) for Pune’s Metro project.

The project has received a boost from Kiran Gitte, the PMRDA metropolitan commissioner.