State govt gives go-ahead for stalled Pavana Pipeline Project
The project involves laying a direct 40 km closed pipeline from the Pavana dam in Maval taluka to Ravet in Pimpri-Chinchwad
Following the long delay of 12 years, the State government has finally given permission to resume the Pavana Pipeline Project that was stalled in 2011 following firing on farmers, said the officials. Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) will rework the entire project and start work immediately, said the officials.
The project involves laying a direct 40 km closed pipeline from the Pavana dam in Maval taluka to Ravet in Pimpri-Chinchwad. The project was put on hold in 2011 by then Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan after three farmers were killed in police firing during a protest against the development. The official order to resume the work was issued on Friday, September 8 by the State government.
After completion of the project, the twin cities will get an additional 48 million litre per day (MLD) water supply from Pawana dam. Owing to its uncertain future, the project cost during this period has shot up to around ₹1,000 crore, said, the officials.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) local MLA, Mahesh Landge has been following up on the subject since 2014 and raised the issue multiple times during the Assembly sessions. The project, when planned in 2008, had estimated the cost to be around ₹400 crore. The PCMC had already spent ₹170 crore on the project and was actively considering the resumption of the long-delayed blueprint.
MLA Landge said Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis responded positively during the meeting while discussing the stalled development. Considering the interest of citizens, the government has decided to resume the scheme.
Landge went on to say that, with the twin city’s population expected to grow at a rapid pace, then-Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in 2014 decided to build new water sources. As a result, the Bhama-Askhed project, through which the PCMC will receive 267 MLD water, gained momentum.
“The administration should begin work on the Pavana Pipeline Project as soon as possible. This will permanently end Pimpri-Chinchwad citizens’ water woes,” he said.
Shekhar Singh, PCMC commissioner said the work of the pipeline project will be done on war footing. The project has multiple benefits as it will save waste of water and citizens will get clean water.
“The PCMC had also requested the government to give permission to resume the pipeline project work. Now we have to revamp the entire project. Part of the project was done earlier and considering this a fresh plan new estimate will be drawn for the project,” Singh said.