E-Paper
Katraj-Kondhwa road project costs to rise due to delays
The Pune Municipal Corporation’s (PMC) Katraj-Kondhwa four-kilometre road widening project is not going to complete within the deadline due to lack of land acquisition
The Pune Municipal Corporation’s (PMC) Katraj-Kondhwa four-kilometre road widening project is not going to complete within the deadline due to lack of land acquisition.
The contractor has been able to complete only 25 per cent of work in the last two and half years. Now, the estimate of the cost of the project is going to increase due to the delay.
Katraj –Kondwa road is one of the major parts that link Satara road to Solapur road. The heavy traffic is going out of the city through this route from Westerly bypass to Solapur road. However, the road is too narrow (15 meter to 20 meter in width) and it is always facing traffic chaos on the stretch of around four kilometres from Kondwa to Katraj junction through a Khadi Machine chowk.
Only 25 per cent work complete
In December 2018, a PMC-appointed contractor began the work of road widening from existing (15 to 20 meter) to 84 metres. The project cost was ₹215 crore including Goods Service Tax (GST). The deadline was three years, to be completed in December 2021.
After almost two and half years, the contractor has completed only 25 per cent of work as the PMC is not able to hand over land required for road widening. The contractor has completed road widening works in patches where he received the land to widen the road.
Vishal Lokhande, resident of Tilekarnagar Katraj-Kondhwa road said, “My office is located in Katraj area. It is very dangerous to pass through on Katraj-Kondhwa road. The work is incomplete. Most of the road is dug and hard to drive for two-wheelers and four-wheelers. Potholes are visible on roads and it is filled with water. I don’t know when the work is going to be completed and taxpayers will get a better road.”
V G Kulkarni, chief superintendent engineer of the road department said, “On paper, we have acquired 70 per cent of land for both sides of roads. But we have acquired only 50 per cent of the actual land. The deadline will be missed as only 25 per cent of work has been completed so far and the deadline of the project will end in the month December 2021. The budget of the project will increase as project delays.”
Sudhir Chavan, executive engineer of road department who is handling the project said, “Lack of land acquisition and Covid-19 pandemic hampered the project. At present, road widening work is going on at Shatrunjay Bhaktamar Jain Mandir on Kondhwa road. It is a 300-meter road widening stretch. We acquired 70 per cent of land but it is in scatter form. So, work is also completed in bits and pieces. We cannot complete it in a continuous stretch.”
He added, “Old bungalows, houses and shops are coming in the road widening. There are around 80 such structures in a four kilometre stretch of road. PMC offered a Floor space Index (FSI) and Transfer Development Rights (TDR) as compensation as per land acquisition rules. But they are not ready to take FSI and TDR as compensation. They are demanding cash compensation. Some house owners want a piece of land or a readymade house or flat. Builders can utilize FSI or TDR, but it is not possible for small households to use FSI or TDR in the market.”
PMC needs ₹700 crore for land acquisition
Chavan further said, “The administration has calculated ₹700 crore for land acquisition. Due to the financial crunch, it is not possible for the PMC to pay that much as compensation.”
Earlier, PMC decided to carry out a road widening project with deferred payment option-temporary postponement of the payment of an outstanding bill or debt, usually involving repayment by instalments. But, PMC came to know that the corporation would have to pay an additional ₹100 crore in the deferred payment option to the contractor. So, it was discarded by the PMC’s standing committee.
