Pune: Following the state government's lifting of the stay on the Pavana Enclosed Water Pipeline project last year, the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) has begun drafting a new plan for the project.

Initially estimated at ₹398 crores 16 years ago, the project cost is now expected to escalate to ₹1,000 crores.

The project, aimed at meeting the growing water demands of Pimpri-Chinchwad, was originally conceptualized under the central government's Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) to bring water from the Pavana Dam directly to the Sector 23 water purification center in Nigdi via an enclosed pipeline.

The contract was awarded in April 2008 with a two-year deadline, but opposition from Maval residents led to a police-protected land acquisition in August 2011.

The project faced severe backlash, including stone-pelting by farmers, resulting in the state government halting the work on August 10, 2011.

Since the halt, only 4.40 kilometers of the planned 34.71-kilometer pipeline were completed, and the project remained dormant for 12 years. It wasn't until September 8, 2023, that the state government, under the leadership of Guardian Minister Ajit Pawar, lifted the stay.

Despite this, no progress was made over the past year, as the government provided no direction on whether to proceed with the old plan or create a new one. Now, the municipal corporation has finally initiated the process of drafting a new plan.

According to Shrikant Savane, Chief Engineer of the Water Supply Department, the new plan will be submitted to the state government for approval, followed by the tender process.