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Long-delayed HCMTR project gathers pace as PMC starts process to appoint consultants
The principal consultant will update technical reports, review the project’s feasibility and complete pre-tender formalities before civil works are tendered
The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has initiated the next phase of the long-pending high-capacity mass transit route (HCMTR) project by floating tenders to appoint consultants for technical preparations and land acquisition, following chief minister Devendra Fadnavis’s directive to expedite the project.
The civic body on Tuesday invited bids to appoint a principal consultant for pre-tender activities and another consultant to handle land acquisition, marking the first major step towards execution after the project’s alignment was revised.
The principal consultant will update technical reports, review the project’s feasibility and complete pre-tender formalities before civil works are tendered. A separate consultant will assist the PMC in land acquisition, surveys and related statutory processes.
Originally proposed in Pune’s development plan (DP) as a 35.96 km grade-separated ring corridor, the HCMTR aims to provide uninterrupted movement for buses and emergency vehicles while easing congestion on arterial roads. The project remained stalled for over a decade because of extensive land acquisition, environmental clearances and changes in the city’s transport network. Following the latest revision, the corridor has been extended to 43 km.
To revive the project, the PMC modified the alignment at 12 locations to minimise land acquisition and submitted the revised proposal to the state government, which approved it in 2024.
PMC commissioner Naval Kishore Ram said that the civic body aims to move quickly with the next stage of implementation.
“We have initiated the process of appointing consultants and are targeting October to invite construction tenders. We have also secured an initial funding commitment of ₹3,000 crore for the project,” Ram said.
Additional municipal commissioner Pavneet Kaur, who is also the member-secretary of the state government-appointed committee overseeing the project, said that the revised plan largely retains the alignment approved in 2024 while addressing key gaps.
“The alignment approved by the state government last year has been largely retained. The increase in the corridor length from about 36 km to 43 km is primarily because we have completed the missing link between Vishrantwadi and Bopodi, creating a continuous elevated ring corridor. The consultants will now update the technical studies, complete statutory requirements and prepare the project for execution,” she said.
Chief superintendent engineer Dinkar Gojare said that the alignment was modified at 12 locations to reduce land acquisition and improve implementation.
“Although technical studies were carried out earlier, nearly 12 years have passed. Fresh environmental studies, updated land records and revisions to account for Pune Metro corridors are now required, particularly where HCMTR overlaps with metro infrastructure and major roads,” he said.
He said the updated technical review is expected to be completed within three months.
“Drone surveys for land acquisition are already underway to verify land boundaries and ground levels. These surveys will help us finalise the acquisition plan,” Gojare said.
According to him, around 51% of the land required for the original alignment is already available.
“The state government has agreed in principle to transfer the required government land either free of cost or at nominal rates and grant the necessary permissions so that construction can begin without delay,” he said.
The revised proposal extends the corridor by incorporating the Vishrantwadi-Sappers Chowk stretch and the Bopodi section through existing 60-metre roads and defence land.
“We have submitted a four-phase implementation plan to the chief minister with a target of completing the entire HCMTR within three years of commencement,” Gojare said.
Designed as a six-lane, grade-separated corridor with a central bus rapid transit system (BRTS), the 43-km HCMTR will be 24 metres wide and is intended to enable uninterrupted travel at speeds of up to 50 kmph. The project will require 68.03 hectares of land, out of which 15 hectares of private land has already been acquired by the PMC through transferable development rights (TDR).
The corridor will pass through Khadki, Aundh, Shivajinagar, Erandwane, Kothrud, Karve Nagar, Dattawadi, Parvati, Bibwewadi, Wanawadi, Salisbury Park, Hadapsar, Mundhwa, Kalyani Nagar, Yerawada and Kalas.
