Pune: The Katraj-Kondhwa road widening project is facing delays despite the allocation of ₹139.83 crores by the state government for land acquisition.

The funds were deposited into the Pune Municipal Corporation's treasury on July 1st, but no land has been acquired yet. The Municipal Corporation has only compiled a list of required land acquisitions without preparing actual proposals, leading to a delay of three to four months in the process.

The original plan to widen the 3.5 km road from Katraj Chowk to Khadimachine Chowk to 84 meters was scaled back to 50 meters due to cost concerns, reducing the expenditure from ₹715 crores to ₹280 crores.

Pursuing these funds since May 2023, the Municipal Corporation had requested ₹200 crores from the state government, resulting in an agreement to share the cost equally.

The funds were approved a day before the Lok Sabha election code of conduct on March 15, but only reached the Municipal Corporation on July 1st.

Road Department Criticized for Delays:

The Municipal Corporation had been citing a lack of funds as the reason for the delay in road widening for the past one and a half years.

Despite repeated assurances from government officials, including Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Deputy Chief Ministers Ajit Pawar and Devendra Fadnavis, the administration failed to prepare urgent land acquisition proposals.

The Municipal Corporation aims to acquire approximately 4 lakh square feet of land from 60 landowners with these funds, but delays persist due to the lack of prepared proposals.

Compromise-based land acquisition proposals are currently being prepared, with discussions ongoing with some landowners. These proposals are expected to be ready for approval next week, according to Road Department Head Aniruddha Pawaskar.