Pune: Nearly a month after people under the banner of Traffic Free Chakan Kriti Samiti took out a march to the Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority (PMRDA) office demanding urgent measures to decongest the Chakan industrial area, residents said there has been no visible improvement in road conditions or traffic situation.“Our protest march to the PMRDA office in Akurdi on Oct 9 was to highlight the traffic chaos. We also submitted a memorandum. But they have not yet taken any concrete action,” Samiti member Kunal Kad on Saturday said, adding they now plan to take a follow-up next week.Kad further said while the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation began minor repair works, other agencies “seem to be in a sleep mode.” “Poor road infrastructure, lack of parking and the absence of coordination between PMRDA, PWD and the local civic body continue to worsen congestion,” he said.PMRDA was appointed as the coordinating agency, but it has yet to bring all stakeholders together, Kad said and blamed a lack of political will for the neglect. Chakan and its adjoining industrial belt are among Maharashtra’s top tax-contributing regions but lag behind cities like Nagpur by nearly a decade in infrastructure, he said. “Lives are at stake. During emergencies, doctors refuse to come because of traffic jams,” Kad said.Local residents said commuting through Chakan has become unbearable, with gridlocks lasting hours during peak morning and evening traffic. Continuous rain through Oct has further damaged roads. “There isn’t a single day I’m not stuck for over an hour on Talegaon-Shikrapur Road,” said a Thergaon resident employed in Chakan MIDC area.Another commuter called the stretch a “death trap” due to potholes and frequent accidents.Kad said while several road projects have been proposed, deadlines are repeatedly missed. Ambethan Chowk — the junction linking Talegaon-Shikrapur Road and the Pune-Nashik stretch of the national highway 60 — remains the worst bottleneck. A senior PMRDA official said the authority has written to NHAI and PWD to expedite pending works, but the proposals are still awaiting clearance.Industries seek Gadkari’s intervention The Federation of Chakan Industries has urged Union minister Nitin Gadkari to expedite the tender process for the proposed Rs 7,827-crore Nashik Phata-Rajgurunagar elevated road on the Pune-Nashik stretch of the national highway 60. In a letter sent on Saturday, federation CEO Dilip Batwal said traffic congestion has severely affected industrial operations in the Chakan belt.Although the Union cabinet cleared the project in Dec 2023, tender opening has been delayed due to land acquisition issues.The Maharashtra govt allocated funds for acquisition in May 2025 and promised completion by Oct. The tender was re-floated in Aug and has postponed thrice since then. It is now set for opening on Nov 23. Industries have sought Gadkari’s personal intervention to appoint a developer and start work urgently.
