Amusement parks,call centres along Expressway

The MSRDC has appointed consultants who have carried out a corridor planning and techno-economic feasibility report for the land development along the expressway. Villages like Kon,Bhatan,Madap,Kumbhawali,Sanigaon,Kusgaon,Taje,Urse and Kalamboli are the probable sites for the project.

“We have hundreds of acres of land along the expressway and there is lot of scope for the development of road-side facilities. Soon,we will come out with a comprehensive policy for this,” Subhash Nage,MSRDC chief engineer,told The Indian Express.

He added,“But we have not restricted ourselves with the expressway alone as we are also looking at private lands and other sites for such projects.”

A senior MSRDC official in Pune said,“The MSRDC certainly proposes to utilise the idle land along the expressway for commercial purposes. We want to take up theme parks,amusement parks and truck terminus on a priority basis. The cost of the project would be Rs 56 crore and we have floated tender for the projects. If everything goes as per the plan,we can start the construction over the next eight months or so.” The MSRDC officials also admitted that developing the land along the expressway on a commercial basis was one of the ways to get rid of the huge debt it was reeling under.

On its website,the MSRDC has listed motels,restaurant,service stations,auto showroom,convention centre,hospital,naturopathy and ayurvedic centres,discount shopping centte,multiplex corporate training and conference facilities,farmers market,call centres and so on amongst the various projects being mulled upon for the Expressway.

The transport activists in the city have welcomed this move. “Since the number of people using the Pune-Mumbai expressway is growing every year,setting up of commercial plazas is a welcome step,” said Chandmal Parmar,chairman of the traffic and transport committee of MCCIA.

The MSRDC attempted to commercialise the stretch in 2003,which did not materialise