E-Paper
Pune region will emerge as country’s prominent growth hub by 2030: CM
Fadnavis said that the plan of the state is to create small townships in the Pune metropolitan region so that pressure on Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad eases
Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis said that Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad will emerge as the country’s prominent growth hub by 2030.
Fadnavis addressed a gathering in Pune on Saturday after jointly performing the groundbreaking ceremony with Union minister for road transport and highways Nitin Gadkari for three major elevated road projects worth over ₹18,000 crore. Deputy chief minister Sunetra Pawar and state PWD minister Shivendraraje Bhosle were present.
“Plans are afoot by the state government to further boost the infrastructure of Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad since it will emerge as a prominent growth engine of the country by 2030. We cannot afford to create a situation in Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad like Bengaluru which is facing huge traffic issues. We have to plan ahead to establish proper infrastructure for seamless mobility in Pune region,” said Fadnavis.
According to Fadnavis, the contribution of Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad in the country’s GDP is ₹6.75 lakh crore. The two cities are a big urban agglomeration and its population will touch 80 lakh in near future.
“The state government is keeping the entire Pune metropolitan region in mind while planning projects to further ease traffic congestion and enhance other facilities in the region. The region is a hub for startups and educational institutes. It is also emerging as a hub for deep technology and frontier technology. Over 35% of the country’s Global Capability Centres (GCC) in the country are being established in the Pune region,” said the CM.
Fadnavis said that the plan of the state is to create small townships in the Pune metropolitan region so that pressure on Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad eases.
About the proposed airport at Purandar, Fadnavis said that once it gets operational, Pune region’s GDP will further increase by 2%-3%.
“The ongoing land acquisition for the airport is the fastest in the country and will be completed within six months, which is August this year. So far, over 50% of the land has been acquired by the district administration. All formalities for the construction work of the airport will be finalised by the end of this year,” he said.
Fadnavis said that a twin tunnel has been proposed at Dive Ghat–one for vehicle movement and the other for metro corridor–for seamless connectivity between Pune and the proposed airport.
Stating that the three road projects for which groundbreaking ceremony was performed will ease traffic congestions and enhance quick connectivity with the industrial areas,
“The state government has also planned other projects in the Pune region like the High Capacity Mass Transit Route, outer and inner ring roads etc,” said Fadnavis.
The CM stressed the need for the local government authorities to plan for the drinking water requirement for the next 30-40 years in the Pune region. “New water sources have to be identified and also treatment and reuse of used water,” he said.
“The proposed Nashik-Ahmednagar-Solapur highway will ensure that about 40% to 45% of north-to-south traffic will not enter Pune and Mumbai. The tender process for the 30-km-long road project from Nashik Phata to Khed has been completed, and work will begin once land acquisition is complete,” Gadkari said.
According to him, the work on the new tunnel in Khambatki Ghat is in its final stages and will be inaugurated soon. He said a detailed project report is prepared for a new highway worth approximately ₹15,000 crore connecting Thane to Pune and further to Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar via Shirur on the old Pune-Mumbai route.
Ram Raksha protest
While talking to reporters, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis took a dig at Shiv Sena (UBT) president Uddhav Thackeray after the latter offered prayers at Ram temple in Nagpur on Saturday as a part of the party’s Ram Raksha protest.
“It’s good that Uddhav has realised that ‘Jo Ram Ka Nahi Wo Kisi Ka Nahi’ (those who do not believe in Lord Ram are left in lurch). He has come back to Lord Ram and I compliment him for that. I hope that the prayers that he offered were not a political programme,” Fadnavis said.
The UBT chief along with his son, Aaditya, and other party functionaries offered prayers and performed aarti ahead of the party’s Ram Raksha agitation following the alleged embezzlement and theft of donations from the Ram Temple in Ayodhya.
