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Chandni Chowk flyover work nears completion, Pune district collector reviews progress
District collector Rajesh Deshmukh, along with other officials from Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC), National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority (PMRDA), on Wednesday visited Chandni Chowk project site to review work
District collector Rajesh Deshmukh, along with other officials from Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC), National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority (PMRDA), on Wednesday visited Chandni Chowk project site to review work.
According to Deshmukh, most work on the Chandni Chowk stretch will be completed by mid-April this year. The Union Minister for Highways Nitin Gadkari has already announced that the flyover will be inaugurated on May 1.
Deshmukh also directed the officials to plan the final phase of the work being done at the chowk.
“The work being done to facilitate traffic at Chandni Chowk is in the final stage. At present, 86 per cent of the project has been completed and we plan to complete all the works by May 2023,” said Sanjay Kadam, NHAI project director.
During the visit, he inspected Mulshi to Mumbai stretch, NDA Road to Mumbai, Bawdhan to Kothrud and Mulshi to Satara routes on this chowk. He also inquired about the work of the underpass leading to Mulshi and the construction of a new bridge in place of the old demolished bridge which is in progress. “For that, proper planning of traffic should be done while laying the girder,” he said. He directed that the residents should be informed about the alternative transport route before starting the work.
Along with Desmhukh, Kadam, NHAI deputy manager Ankit Yadav, Pune Regional Transport Officer Ajit Shinde, NHAI Consultant Engineer Bharat Todkari and other senior officials were present.
“There were discussions with the officials regarding the measures being taken as per the recommendations of ‘Save Life’, the work being done to reduce accidents at Navale Bridge, the work at Dive Ghat on Palkhi Marg etc. The work on Dive Ghat should be started soon and instructions are given for the beautification of Chandni Chowk and a plan has been prepared for it,” said Deshmukh.
Last year in August, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde visited the project site and directed officials to demolish the old bridge to avoid traffic congestion. Accordingly, several government agencies took this demolition work of the old bridge and it was demolished by explosives on October 2, 2022, and the traffic leading to Mumbai and Bengaluru was smoothed.
To avoid permanent traffic jams, a meeting was held on November 1 in the presence of the district collector. Since then, work on the project has picked up pace. At present, rock excavation is being done at the NDA roadside for service roads and other works. The construction of pillars for the new bridge on the Bavdhan side is also complete.
“At the site of the old bridge, eight lanes are available for traffic, five from Mumbai to Satara or Kothrud and three from Satara to Mumbai. Two additional routes are also available from Satara to Mumbai via NDA. The six-lane construction of the Bengaluru-Mumbai highway has been completed. Ramp No. 6 from Bavadhan to Satara is planned to be completed in the next 15 days. 4-lane service road to Satara via Kothrud-Sringerimath-Warje and NDA to Mumbai Ramp No.5 has been completed and these roads have been opened for traffic,” said Deshmukh.
The work of widening the subway from Mulshi to Kothrud will be completed in the next 15 days and the walls are being painted on both sides. The work of the Mulshi to Satara ramp is being completed and the traffic coming from Mulshi has been diverted.
The Mulshi-Mumbai ramp has also been completed and this road has also been opened for traffic. The service road from Bavdhan to Pashan to Kothrud has been completed. The service road from Mumbai to Kothru is 80 per cent complete and will be completed in a month.
