Pune: To cater to the needs of motorists using Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) vehicles, the city requires 100 refilling stations but currently there are only 57 refilling stations. However by March 2019, Maharashtra Natural Gas Limited (MNGL) will be coming up with 43 refilling stations out of which six to seven stations will come up in the recent future. 

AM Tambekar, Managing Director of MNGL, told Sakal Times that currently there are 167 petrol stations of Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL), Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) and Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL). MNGL alone has 57 outlets of CNG refill stations which are operational currently. But to cater to the CNG vehicles of the city there is a necessity of another 43 refilling CNG stations which rounds up to 100. These remaining refilling stations will be coming up by March 2019 and from these six to seven are in process to come up soon.

In peak hours the prominent areas of the city and small lanes experience traffic congestions as the CNG vehicles queue up to refill their vehicles at the CNG stations. Over this Tambekar, said, “We are aware of the fact that in peak hours traffic congestions take place due to long queue up of CNG vehicles for a refill and that is the reason we are trying to put up the refill stations in places which are convenient to people.”

Tambekar also added, “We have also approached the municipal corporations including Pune, Pimpri Chinchwad and the Pune and Khadki cantonment boards (PCB and KCB) to provide vacant spaces to set up refilling stations.
 
Tambekar said, “PMC has given us eight land approvals and the PCMC does not have land available with them to provide us with for the CNG refilling stations. The PCB and the KCB have also given us proposals of land but they are in process to be approved. And for the first time, we approached the Pimpri Chinchwad New Town Development Authority (PCNTDA) who has given us seven to eight land approvals. Also, the IOCL has given us 45 plots for CNG refilling stations till now,”

Besides government plots, MNGL has also appealed to private landowners to provide space for the CNG refill station and about 30 private landowners have so far shown willingness to give plots to set up refilling pumps. Tambekar, said, “We are scrutinising the proposals received from landowners. This process of scrutiny is important because we will have to match our demand with the proposals.”