20 firms consider Chakan exit over traffic, Infra woes

The combined annual turnover of the companies considering relocation is estimated at around ₹1,000 crore, according to industry representatives. Discussions are also underway with nearly 4,000 employees regarding the proposed shift.

PUNE: The threat of 20 companies shifting out of Chakan has added urgency to the state government’s efforts to address the industrial belt’s worsening traffic and infrastructure problems, with the Pune district administration setting an August 31 deadline for agencies to carry out road repairs, remove encroachments and improve parking and traffic management.

20 firms consider Chakan exit over traffic, Infra woes

The move comes a day after chief minister Devendra Fadnavis acknowledged that concerns raised by Chakan industrialists were genuine and assured them that the government would address their grievances. Despite the assurance and ongoing administrative efforts, industry representatives said on Wednesday that 20 companies were considering shifting to the Khandala industrial area due to persistent traffic congestion, poor roads and inadequate civic infrastructure.

The combined annual turnover of the companies considering relocation is estimated at around ₹1,000 crore, according to industry representatives. Discussions are also underway with nearly 4,000 employees regarding the proposed shift.

The developments came as MIDC chief executive officer Dipendra Singh Kushwah and Pune district collector Jitendra Dudi held a meeting on Wednesday to review the infrastructure and traffic situation in the Chakan-Talegaon industrial belt. Officials directed MIDC, NHAI, the public works department and other agencies to complete urgent road repairs, remove encroachments and address parking and traffic bottlenecks by August 31.

Companies have also been directed to provide adequate parking within their premises to prevent vehicles from occupying public roads. The administration has ordered urgent repairs on national highways passing through Chakan and Talegaon and asked various departments to work in coordination.

“The MIDC, NHAI, public works department and other agencies are being asked to work in coordination and complete the required interventions by August 31,” Dudi said.

The government’s response assumes significance as industrialists have repeatedly warned that inadequate infrastructure is beginning to affect production, employee attendance and the viability of smaller units in Chakan.

Entrepreneur Dhananjay Shedbale said the Pune-Nashik highway between Bhosari and Ambethan Chowk witnesses severe congestion every day, with travel from Pune city to Chakan sometimes taking two to four hours.

“Employees working in the second shift are unable to reach their workplaces on time, resulting in a decline in production. Twenty companies have decided to relocate. We sent emails to the chief minister three times regarding the traffic problem, but received no response. The condition of industries and employees has become like that of a patient in an intensive care unit,” he said.

Shedbale said companies could not expect employees to spend four to five hours commuting every day. Some firms have consequently opened offices in central Pune, adding to their operating costs, he said.

Dilip Batwal, chief executive officer, Federation of Chakan Industries, said the government’s efforts to improve infrastructure remained inadequate.

Industry representatives said the Chakan MIDC area has around 3,000 national and international companies and provides employment to nearly 15 lakh people. They claimed that around 750 small-scale companies in the industrial area, with a combined annual turnover of about ₹32,000 crore, were facing losses due to infrastructure and traffic problems.

They also claimed that more than 50 industries had already shifted to other states because of infrastructure and traffic-management issues.

Industrialists said the proposed relocation of 20 more companies could have a wider impact because the Chakan industrial ecosystem includes ancillary units, transporters, workers and service providers.

The district administration said the area would also be reviewed from a town-planning perspective, with town-planning engineers tasked with suggesting measures for more systematic development of the rapidly expanding industrial belt.