FROM COMMUTERS and students to top officials and political leaders, the industrial hub of Pimpri-Chinchwad is eagerly waiting for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to open the new Metro rail line extension that will bring them closer — and faster — to the heart of Pune city. PM Modi will also unveil a clutch of big-ticket development projects for the area. The Prime Minister is slated to start his day in Pune with a visit to the iconic Dagdusheth temple in the city at around 11 am after which he will be conferred the Lokmanya Tilak National Award. The award function is politically significant since Modi will share the dais with chief guest Sharad Pawar whose NCP has split, with the breakaway faction led by Ajit Pawar aligning with the ruling BJP-Sena coalition in Maharashtra. The Metro lines will be opened thereafter, at 12:45 pm, following which the Prime Minister will flag off trains on the extensions from Phugewadi to Shivajinagar Civil Court and Garware College to Ruby Hall Clinic. Modi will also inaugurate and lay the foundation stone of several projects, including a Rs 300-crore waste-to-energy plant in Pimpri-Chinchwad and over 11,500 houses across the city under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY). Shekhar Singh, Pimpri-Chinchwad municipal commissioner, said, “The waste-to-energy project signifies that the PCMC is heading towards being the cleanest and greenest city in the country. The project is the first of its kind in Maharashtra. We will be converting nearly 70 per cent of our dry garbage into electricity for our use. We will be saving Rs 20 crore every year. The project will ensure that there will be no more mountains of garbage at our depot. In effect, it means local residents have no reason to complain.” Officials and commuters said the opening of the two Metro stretches, with a train available every 10 minutes during peak hours, will be a “gamechanger” in light of the endless traffic jams witnessed in and around areas such as Shivajinagar and the Pune railway station, which are key hubs of the city. Most of Pune's top educational institutes, such as Fergusson College, Wadia College, Modern College and COEP; hospitals like Sassoon, Ruby Hall, Jehangir and Sancheti; and government offices including Central Building, RTO, Pune Municipal Corporation, Income Tax, Pune Commissionerate and District Collectorate, are all located in this area. While those living in Pune city will reach the station area in just 15 minutes on the Metro, compared to nearly an hour through chaotic road traffic, those in Pimpri-Chinchwad will be able to make it to Shivajinagar in just 20-25 minutes. Currently, it takes more than an hour or even two amidst heavy traffic jams in the Phugewadi-Dapodi-Bopodi-Khadki stretch for these residents to reach the Shivajinagar area. "The new stretches will be a gamechanger for commuters heading towards Shivajinagar and the Pune railway station area," Shravan Hardikar, chairman and managing director of MahaMetro, told The Indian Express. Prajakta Kale, a resident of Pimpri-Chinchwad, said she frequently visits the Pune city area to meet her relatives. “Every week, twice or thrice, I go there on my two-wheeler. There is not a single day when there is no traffic jam on the Pune-Mumbai highway stretch. This has been going on for years. Sometimes, it takes an hour to reach; there are times when it takes at least two hours. Now, with Pune Metro, I will stop the two-wheeler ride. It will help us save money on fuel and give me a better life,” she said. Kiran Dhanavate, a resident of Gurav Pimple, said, “It is not just traffic jams. I travel often through the Pune-Mumbai highway stretch where accidents of two-wheelers are common. I will now always prefer the Metro while going to Pune.” Several students, however, are hoping that the Metro will provide them subsidised passes like the Railways. “For students, the Central Railways provides 50 per cent concession. We just have to submit a letter from our college. I hope Metro will consider our demand,” said Nidhi Kariya, who lives close to Phugewadi station. Metro officials, however, said there is no plan as of now to provide such concessions. “The Metro is already a subsidised transport undertaking. We will consider providing concessions at a later stage,” a spokesperson said. BJP's Bhosari MLA Mahesh Landge described the new Metro stretch and the inauguration of various projects as “a great development” for local residents. “Pimpri-Chinchwad is well and truly heading towards being a smart city. Both the Central and state governments have pushed hard to get these projects rolling,” he said. In a statement issued on Sunday, the Centre said, “The Prime Minister will hand over more than 1,280 houses constructed under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana by PCMC. He will also hand over more than 2,650 PMAY houses constructed by Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC). Further, the Prime Minister will also lay the foundation stone of around 1,190 PMAY houses to be constructed by PCMC, and of over 6400 houses constructed by Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority."
