Building Pune: Pending for 10 years, PMC approves compulsory acquisition of land to complete Baner-Pashan link road construction

Rajendra Bhosale, PMC Municipal Commissioner, said, “Rs 48.22 crore is required to acquire land for the Baner-Pashan link road.”

In the last 10 years, the PMC had failed to construct the remaining 200-metre stretch of the 1,200-metre-long and 36-metre-wide Baner-Pashan link road. The link road is crucial for connectivity among residents of Baner, Balewadi, and Pashan and will impact over 2,50,000 residents.

In August 2023, a plea was filed at the Bombay High Court by the Baner Pashan Link Road Welfare Trust over the civic body’s failure to finish the road project. The court had directed the PMC to acquire land required to complete the link road and submit a timeline both for the land acquisition and the construction of the remaining 200-metre stretch.

However, the PMC efforts to complete land acquisition through negotiations with the private owners failed. Subsequently, on July 10, the court directed the civic administration to go for compulsory acquisition of land as per law.

The High Court bench led by Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Arif Doctor had directed the Pune Municipal Commissioner to personally look into the matter and file an affidavit informing the minimum time required to construct the remaining stretch.

“To leave the road with an unconstructed stretch of 200 metre will not be in public interest and in any condition construction of the road needs to be completed,” the bench had said while seeking a timeline.