Union Minister Nitin Gadkari says Palkhi Marg projects to be completed in next 6 months
The Union minister reviewed the Pune-Pandharpur pilgrimage route projects and said the roads would include dedicated pedestrian lanes and green highway features.
According to the union minister, around 80 per cent of the overall work on both routes has been completed. (Image: @nitin_gadkari/X) Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari on Wednesday said the two Palkhi Marg projects linking Pune to Pandharpur are expected to be completed within the next six months. The projects are aimed at improving infrastructure along the annual pilgrimage routes used by lakhs of warkaris travelling to Pandharpur.
Speaking during a review of the projects, Gadkari said he was personally satisfied with the progress of the work, recalling that his mother had once complained to him about the poor condition of the roads during a pilgrimage to Pandharpur and Gangapur.
“I had promised her that I would bring change to these roads. I am happy that I got the opportunity to do this work,” he said.
The Sant Dnyaneshwar Palkhi Marg NH-965 from Alandi to Pandharpur is 234 km long and passes through Pune, Satara and Solapur districts. Its redevelopment is being carried out at a cost of Rs 7,625 crore in six packages, of which four have been completed so far. “The Dharmapuri to Lonand package is 98 per cent complete, while the Dive Ghat to Hadapsar package is 65 per cent complete,” he said, adding that the redeveloped stretches from Dive Ghat to Lonand, Dharmapuri to Kadus, Kadus to Wakhri, and Wakhri to Mohol are complete.
The Palkhi Marg will bypass the towns of Saswad, Lonand, Phaltan, Natepute, Malshiras and Pandharpur. In response to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s appeal to use less petrol amid the global oil crisis caused by the Iran war, Gadkari travelled by bus to review the work on the Palkhi Margs.
The project includes dedicated lanes for pedestrians participating in the pilgrimage. At Dive Ghat, the road has been widened from two lanes to four. Gadkari said the route also includes railway overbridges, flyovers and 13 bridges. He announced additional works, including a 2-km flyover at Jejuri estimated at Rs 250 crore, a bridge over the Nira river, a 48-km road from Tembhurni to Pandharpur costing Rs 950 crore and a flyover at Tondle village estimated at Rs 100 crore.
The Sant Tukaram Palkhi Marg NH-965G is 130 km long from Patas to Pandharpur, passing through Pune and Solapur districts, and is being redeveloped at a cost of Rs 4,416 crore. The project package from Patas to Baramati is complete, while Indapur to Tondle is 96 per cent complete and Baramati to Indapur is 84 per cent complete. It bypasses the towns of Baramati, Bawda, Akluj and Shripur.
According to the union minister, around 80 per cent of the overall work on both routes has been completed. He said foot overbridges are being built in densely populated areas to allow local traffic movement and that some of them will include lifts for senior citizens.
The integrated development project has also developed 68 lakes to store 5,268 tmc of water, which will be used for agriculture and the feeding of animals. “These roads will pave the way for economic development of the region,” he said.
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