With vacant LS seat, these projects await Pune MP’s intervention

Pune Airport

The Pune airport has been the top most issue that needed attention considering it was the only airport in the city with over 50 lakh population and facing increasing demand for air travel. The development of the new terminal was given push by Bapat and the work on it has completed as it awaits inauguration. Similarly, he had managed to get a skywalk with an escalator developed to connect the airport with Aero mall.

Bapat also managed the Pune Municipal Corporation to acquire Air Force land to develop an alternate road for Pune airport from the city. However, the extension of the runway remains pending.

“The runway on either side needed extension but he continuously held meetings for it and made authorities come to a conclusion to have extension on western side as the land for the purpose could be easily acquired as it belonged to the Union government while there was a civic road on the Eastern side. He coordinated multiple meetings with authorities concerned but after his demise there seems to be slow progress on it,” said his close associate.

Railways

Bapat had realized that there was heavy load and Pune railway station with no land for its expansion. Thus, he pushed for a railway terminal at Khadki and develop Hadapsar railway station in a way that it would handle the trains towards south India.

He also pushed for expanding Shivajinagar railway station to handle some load of Pune station. There is not much development on developing the terminal at Khadki station and improving facilities at Shivajinagar station while some work has been taken up at Hadapsar station.

The PMC was roped in to provide wide roads to station and public transport bus as Secunderabad bound train starts from Hadapsar station.

Pune Metro

The Pune metro rail work was going on in a slow pace and frequent follow up by the MP helped it give a push.
Bapat pushed for extension for the metro railway network by coordinating with Maha-Metro, PMC, state and union government.

The extension from PCMC to Nigdi recently got approved but the extension from Swargate to Katraj, Vanaz to Chandni chowk is awaiting Union government nod.

He urged for extending the metro from Ramwadi to Wagholi and asked for preparing a detailed project report (DPR). The DPR of phase 2 of Pune metro has been submitted to state government and needs to be sent to Union government to get a nod for implementation.

River Rejuvenation project

There was much delay in implementation of river rejuvenation project worth Rs 1,000 crore due to technical issues.

Bapat managed to sort out the issues by coordinating between PMC and union government. He got the project work started but it is going on with slow pace.

Bapat had also urged the union government to extend the work for more area to ensure the river clean and there is not much happened on the front.