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Time of India
16 hours ago
- Automotive
- Time of India
Commuters' suffering unabated as PMC fails to fix potholes, uneven drain covers
1 2 3 4 5 6 Pune: The endless travails of city commuters caused by potholes and shoddy road surfaces of various stretches never seem to end, regardless of the season. Many motorists have pointed out that despite the break in rainfall, road repairs have not gathered pace. Rohit Datar, a regular commuter on Ganeshkhind Road, told TOI, "Potholes are clearly visible on various roads. At University Chowk, which is always a busy junction, giant craters are slowing down vehicles." While Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has declared an assurance of finishing road repairs and filling potholes before Aug 20, commuters are not convinced. You Can Also Check: Pune AQI | Weather in Pune | Bank Holidays in Pune | Public Holidays in Pune Shukrawar Peth resident Ashok Kale said, "Ganesh mandals have already started preparations for pandals. Road repairs should be completed before Ganeshotsav." An official from PMC's road department claimed they have deployed vans for each ward for road repairs and resurfacing. "Deputy engineers attached to each area have been asked to visit key road stretches. The work will be expedited in the next few days," the official said. Another concern expressed by commuters is about the broken and uneven drainage chamber lids posing a risk to motorists — two-wheeler riders in particular. Bikers highlighted that many lids, despite repairs just a few days ago, have come loose as the cement-concrete used to affix them is of bad quality. An autorickshaw driver from the Pune railway station area, Chand Shaikh, said, "Drainage lids need to be fixed properly and at road level. The most problematic road stretches in this regard are Ganeshkhind Road, parts of Tilak Road, Bund Garden Road, Pune railway station area, and many stretches on the outskirts." A civic official told TOI, "For repairs of drainage chamber lids, the road and drainage departments are working in coordination." However, commuters are unhappy with the result. Prachi Gore, a Navi Peth resident who often uses Karve Road stretch to reach Deccan Gymkhana, said, "Almost all chamber lids from Garware College Chowk to Deccan are in bad condition. They are not fixed properly, uneven, or unstable. This poses a major risk to vehicles." Pune: The endless travails of city commuters caused by potholes and shoddy road surfaces of various stretches never seem to end, regardless of the season. Many motorists have pointed out that despite the break in rainfall, road repairs have not gathered pace. Rohit Datar, a regular commuter on Ganeshkhind Road, told TOI, "Potholes are clearly visible on various roads. At University Chowk, which is always a busy junction, giant craters are slowing down vehicles." While Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has declared an assurance of finishing road repairs and filling potholes before Aug 20, commuters are not convinced. Shukrawar Peth resident Ashok Kale said, "Ganesh mandals have already started preparations for pandals. Road repairs should be completed before Ganeshotsav." An official from PMC's road department claimed they have deployed vans for each ward for road repairs and resurfacing. "Deputy engineers attached to each area have been asked to visit key road stretches. The work will be expedited in the next few days," the official said. Another concern expressed by commuters is about the broken and uneven drainage chamber lids posing a risk to motorists — two-wheeler riders in particular. Bikers highlighted that many lids, despite repairs just a few days ago, have come loose as the cement-concrete used to affix them is of bad quality. An autorickshaw driver from the Pune railway station area, Chand Shaikh, said, "Drainage lids need to be fixed properly and at road level. The most problematic road stretches in this regard are Ganeshkhind Road, parts of Tilak Road, Bund Garden Road, Pune railway station area, and many stretches on the outskirts." A civic official told TOI, "For repairs of drainage chamber lids, the road and drainage departments are working in coordination." However, commuters are unhappy with the result. Prachi Gore, a Navi Peth resident who often uses Karve Road stretch to reach Deccan Gymkhana, said, "Almost all chamber lids from Garware College Chowk to Deccan are in bad condition. They are not fixed properly, uneven, or unstable. This poses a major risk to vehicles."
Time of India
19 hours ago
- Business
- Time of India
Relief in sight from traffic congestion as PMC starts compulsory land acquisition for roads
Pune: Commuters may get some relief from the daily traffic toil as the PMC started the compulsory land acquisition for roads last week. "The land will be acquired even if there is a legal dispute. Most of the time, the disputes are about the amount or type of compensation. The compensation amount will be deposited in the court and will be given to the landowner based on the outcome of the court decision," said a senior official of the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC). The PMC officials said compulsory land acquisition meant execution of the govt's legal power to acquire private land for public purposes, irrespective of owners' consent. This process is governed by the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013. You Can Also Check: Pune AQI | Weather in Pune | Bank Holidays in Pune | Public Holidays in Pune The civic administration has decided to speed up the land acquisition for 20 roads under this process. There would be a decline in traffic congestion on nearly 60km of road stretches once the land acquisition is complete and roads are built. Around 70% of the city's traffic passes through these key roads daily. "The civic administration is acquiring land to complete the missing links. When completed, these links will help in reducing the burden of traffic on bigger roads," said Aniruddha Pawaskar, the head of the PMC's road department. The PMC's plan states that a total of 42 proposals from the PMC regarding compulsory land acquisition are being discussed. Of these, 34 proposals are primarily related to the road department. The remaining eight proposals are related to other departments such as PMPML and state transport. Priority has been given to complete Katraj-Kondhwa Road, Satara-Mumbai Road and Pune-Hadapsar-Solapur Road. The civic administration has put the reservation of roads in the development plan. These spaces will be acquired using compulsory acquisition. The administration is also taking steps to expedite the land acquisition for the approach road of the proposed bridge to be constructed from Sun City towards Karvenagar Road. Mahatma Phule Wada and Krantijyoti Savitribai Phule Memorial are also on priority list. A meeting regarding compulsory land acquisition was convened recently with the district administration and the police department. If needed, help from the police would be sought to acquire the land.
Time of India
19 hours ago
- Business
- Time of India
20% of artisans complete training under Vishwakarma scheme
Pune: As many as 5,974 artisans of the total 29,000 from Pune district registered for the Vishwakarma Scheme have completed the training programme. Around 7,934 artisans have completed the three-stage verification, while 1,960 applications for training are pending. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Close to 3,768 artisans filed applications with banks seeking loans, of which 998 applications were approved, totalling Rs 10 crore. The PM Vishwakarma Yojana is designed to offer comprehensive support to artisans and craftspeople working with traditional tools. The scheme aims to provide them with skill upgradation and relevant and suitable training opportunities, along with credit access. "We have provided 964 toolkits to the artisans under the scheme so far," Satish Kharat, district village industries officer, said. Most of the registrations are from artisans in trades such as toymaking, garlandmaking, goldsmiths, tailoring, cobblers, and washermen. Sandip Lokhande, who runs a centre to implement the scheme, said although the scheme is extremely beneficial to the artisans, there is a need to ease the process. "The registration process is lengthy as applications are routed through Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) and Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC). Many people face problems linking bank accounts with Aadhaar cards," he said. After registration, artisans have to travel from Pune to Pimpri Chinchwad due to a lack of facilities. "Overall, there is a lack of trainers. Banks also reject loans because the artisan is a fresher or does not have an existing setup," Lokhande said.
Time of India
20 hours ago
- Business
- Time of India
State clears Rs332-crore sewage pipeline project in 16 merged areas
Pune: The urban development department on Tuesday cleared a proposal approving Rs332 crore to build a sewage pipeline network in 16 of the 23 merged areas within the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) limits. "Sewage lines will be laid in 16 of the 23 merged areas after state govt's administrative approval. Tenders will be floated next month, and actual ground work is expected to begin after the rainy season," said Jagdish Khanore, a senior official from PMC's drainage department. He said the problem of open drainage lines will be resolved to a large extent after the pipelines are laid. PMC prepared a detailed project report worth Rs1,437.94 crore for the sewerage system in 23 newly included villages. The project includes replacement of old low-capacity sewage lines, laying 472-km new collection lines and 90.50-km main sewage lines. It also includes construction of 8 sewage treatment plants. You Can Also Check: Pune AQI | Weather in Pune | Bank Holidays in Pune | Public Holidays in Pune So far, Rs533.85 crore, including Rs332 crore, have been approved under Centre's Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) scheme. Of these, Rs343.13 crore are for sewage pipelines and Rs190.72 crore are for sewage treatment plants, officials said. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like My 4-year-old kidneys are failing, only you can help Donate For Health Donate Now Undo The 16 villages where the pipelines are to be laid are Sus, Mhalunge, Narhe, Pisoli, Sanasnagar, Kondhwe-Dhawade, Kirkitwadi, Nandoshi, Khadakwasla, Navin Kopare, Nanded, Bhilarewadi, Gujar Nimbalkarwadi, Jambhulwadi, Kolewadi and Mangdewadi. The process to sanction a sewage network in the remaining seven villages — Balewadi, Autadewadi-Handewadi, Holkarwadi, Wadachiwadi, Wagholi, Shelwalewadi and Manjari Budruk — is under way.
Time of India
2 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Ganesh mandals want traffic chaos-free roads, more toilets
Pune: Office bearers of several Ganesh mandals on Monday demanded that the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) and police ensure better traffic management, pothole-free roads, more toilets for women, and adequate safety measures for devotees during the 10-day Ganeshotsav next month. Speaking at a joint meeting held at the civic headquarters, they welcomed govt's announcement to declare it a state festival and the allocation of funds. The representatives said there was no clarification on how much fund govt sanctioned for this year, but a share from the amount should be utilised for the welfare of mandal workers. Former corporator Ravindra Malvadkar said, "There is no clarity if govt has allocated Rs100 crore or more for the festival. The mandals should get financial assistance from this fund, and money should be spent on welfare schemes for the workers." You Can Also Check: Pune AQI | Weather in Pune | Bank Holidays in Pune | Public Holidays in Pune More money should be utilised to provide toilets for women at various locations, said Pushkar Tuljapurkar of Nehru Tarun Mandal. "Cleaning and crowd management are big challenges authorities face every year. We want proper planning to address both issues to ensure better movement of devotees," Tuljapurkar said. Sources from various Ganesh mandals said the festival is expected to be grand this year ahead of the civic polls, but there is no clarify if the mandals will be kept open and the loudspeakers will be allowed round the clock. "Political workers and ticket aspirants are looking to reach out to maximum voters during the festival," a mandal worker from Shukrawar Peth, who attended the meeting, said. Citizens and representatives of various organisations demanded that the authorities restrict the use of speakers, Dolby and laser lights during the festival and immersion processions. "These are troublesome. Awareness should be created among mandals in this regard," said Vilas Lele of Akhil Bharatiya Grahak Panchayat. PMC commissioner Naval Kishore Ram said the ongoing Metro and other works at Baba Bhide Bridge in the Deccan Gymkhana area will be completed by Aug 20, ahead of Ganeshotsav. "A survey of all the areas will be held to improve the condition of roads, and steps will be taken to repair potholes and make provision for adequate streetlights. The Metro administration is planning to operate trains until 2am and at an increased frequency," Ram said, adding that the civic body will approach the district collector on the mandals' demand of keeping the liquor shops shut during the festival. DCP Krushikesh Rawale said that a comprehensive plan will be finalised for traffic movement and crowd management to avoid rush and a stampede-like situation. "A meeting will be held with the mandals in the next few days," he said.
