Residents stop PMRDA’s Ring Road survey, demand change in alignment

Around 200 residents converged at the site and blocked officials from conducting the survey as a mark of protest against the new alignment which they claim will destroy homes, farmlands and natural water resources

Residents of Kadamwak Wasti and Jambhulwadi gathered at a major traffic junction – where Maha-Metro’s Hadapsar-Loni Kalbhor corridor, National Highways Authority of India’s (NHAI’s) elevated highway, and Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority’s (PMRDA’s) Inner Ring Road meet – to stop PMRDA officials from carrying out the Ring Road survey on Monday. Around 200 residents converged at the site and blocked officials from conducting the survey as a mark of protest against the new alignment which they claim will destroy homes, farmlands and natural water resources. On Tuesday, the residents met PMRDA commissioner Yogesh Mhase and demanded a complete review of the alignment.

PMRDA has proposed the Ring Road to reduce traffic congestion in Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad. In the revised plan, the road is 128 kilometres long and 75 metres wide. (REPRESENTATIVE PHOTO)

PMRDA has proposed the Ring Road to reduce traffic congestion in Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad. In the revised plan, the road is 128 kilometres long and 75 metres wide. Land acquisition and alignment work are being carried out in phases but objections raised by residents have decelerated the project. Farmers of Kadamwak Wasti are concerned that they may lose their land. A preliminary plan shows 17 acres acquired for the Ring Road. In Jambhulwadi alone, 23 hectares of land has been acquired and around 100 families may lose their homes, residents claim.

Resident Nivrutti Kalbhor said that the new route will cut through their homes and farms. “We have already given land for other projects. We cannot afford to lose more land. This alignment will destroy our houses,” Kalbhor said.

Another resident Suresh Gaikwad said that families are under stress due to repeated land acquisition. “We are not against development but this alignment must change. Our houses and water sources will vanish if the road is built in this direction,” Gaikwad said.

Residents claim that land has already been acquired for the Mumbai-Bengaluru highway and that the new alignment will destroy their homes and water resources. Meanwhile, Mhase said that discussions have been held with the affected families and that the PMRDA will work towards an acceptable solution.