Pune: Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Monday directed officials of Pune district to expedite three major projects — construction of high capacity mass transit route (HCMTR), internal ring road and the proposed tunnel network for which a fresh alignment study was needed — to ease the traffic situation in the city.Fadnavis chaired a meeting in Mumbai of a high-powered committee constituted for planning, financial management, implementation and monitoring of major urban transport projects in Pune city to reduce traffic congestion. Deputy CM and Pune guardian minister Sunetra Pawar and deputy CM Ekanth Shinde were also in attendance.Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) chief Naval Kishore Ram, Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation chief Vijay Suryawanshi and additional police commissioner of Pune Manoj Patil gave presentations regarding traffic congestion issues.Officials who attended the meeting said the CM had directed the administration to expedite the delayed HCMTR project to be implemented by PMC. The land acquisition work was expected to commence in Oct. “The HCMTR route will be 43.6 km long with connectivity to Metro lines. It will reduce road traffic by nearly 25% to 30%. The CM has set a target of 2028 for completion of the project considering its importance,” a senior official said.The CM also ordered officials to set up a special purpose vehicle — comprising PMC and PMRDA — to raise funds and execute the HCMTR and Pune inner ring road projects within the deadline.“It was also decided to give 30% govt land free to PMC for the HCMTR project. PMRDA’s town planning scheme is likely to be scrapped for the said plan,” another official said.The administration has also proposed an underground network of tunnels across the city to address the traffic congestion issue. “The CM directed officials to carry out a fresh survey of tunnel alignment,” the official added.Proposal to appoint DIG rank officer for traffic managementThree years ago, the Pune city police had sent a proposal to the state home department seeking appointment of a deputy inspector general (DIG) rank officer for better management of traffic. The post would be equal to the additional commissioner of police’s and the officer would be assisted by two deputy commissioners. A senior police officer on Monday told TOI: “The proposal is pending with the home department. It has been discussed on a few occasions. We are following up.”(With inputs from Gitesh Shelke)
