Mega Transport Project Back On Track In Pune As Civic Body Invites Bids For Consultants

The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has started the process of reviving the long-pending High Capacity Mass Transit Route (HCMTR) project in the city by inviting bids to appoint consultants for technical work and land acquisition, officials said on Tuesday.

The move follows Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis' direction to expedite the ambitious transport project, which has remained on the drawing board for more than a decade due to land acquisition hurdles, environmental issues and changes in the city's transport infrastructure.

The civic body has floated separate tenders for a principal consultant to undertake pre-tender technical work and another consultant to oversee land acquisition, surveys and statutory procedures.

PMC commissioner Naval Kishore Ram said the administration was aiming to complete the preparatory exercise quickly and issue construction tenders by October.

"We have initiated the consultant appointment process and have secured an initial funding commitment of ₹3,000 crore for the project," he said.

Originally conceived as a 35.96-km elevated ring corridor in Pune's Development Plan, the HCMTR has now been expanded to around 43 km after revisions to the alignment. The modified plan, approved by the state government in 2024, includes the missing Vishrantwadi-Bopodi link, creating a continuous ring corridor around the city.

Additional Municipal Commissioner Pavneet Kaur said the revised alignment largely follows the route cleared by the state government while addressing critical connectivity gaps.

She said the consultants would update technical studies, complete statutory formalities and prepare the project for the execution stage.

Chief Superintendent Engineer Dinkar Gojare said the alignment had been altered at 12 locations to minimise land acquisition and improve project feasibility.

Gojare said earlier technical studies had become outdated over the past 12 years and fresh environmental assessments, updated land records and revised plans were required, particularly where the corridor intersects with Metro routes and major roads.

According to him, drone-based surveys for land acquisition are already in progress and the updated technical review is expected to be completed within three months.

He said nearly 51% of the land required under the original alignment was already available, while the state government had agreed in principle to transfer the required government land either free of cost or at nominal rates.

The proposed six-lane, 24-metre-wide elevated corridor, with a central Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS), is designed to facilitate uninterrupted movement of buses and emergency vehicles at speeds of up to 50 kmph while easing congestion on major roads across the city.

Key Pune city locations and suburbs like Bopodi, Aundh, Shivajinagar, Kothrud, Erandawane, Wanowrie, Hadapsar, Mundhwa, and Vishrantwadi will be connected under HCMTR.