Pune: Farmers from Maval taluka have announced a long march on Oct 2 under the leadership of Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana chief and former MP Raju Shetti, intensifying their opposition to the proposed closed pipeline project to draw water directly from Pavana dam to Pimpri Chinchwad.The protest comes as the state moves to revive the long-pending plan after nearly 15 years.Speaking to reporters in Maval on Thursday, Shetti said the march would begin from the site where three farmers were killed in police firing during an agitation against the project and culminate at the Pavana dam. The project has been stalled since the firing incident in 2011.Recently, state govt stepped up efforts to revive the project. Last month, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis reviewed its progress at a meeting attended by local public representatives and district officials. He said the plan would not be implemented until all concerns of agitating farmers were addressed. The govt had lifted the stay on the project in 2023, but work was yet to start due to continued opposition.Shetti said, “Farmers and villagers have no objection to water being supplied to Pimpri Chinchwad from the Pavana dam. They are against the plan to carry the water through a closed pipeline. Diverting the water in this manner will drastically reduce the flow of the Pavana river, affecting irrigation as well as drinking water supply to villages in Maval taluka.”Farmer leaders said nearly 72 villages depend on Pavana river for irrigation and the project would severely impact agriculture and water availability in the region.Pavana dam is the key source of drinking water for areas under Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation. Civic officials have maintained that the proposed closed pipeline would prevent contamination and reduce transmission losses due to evaporation, enabling the city to receive nearly 100 million litres per day of additional water.Meanwhile, farmers also renewed their demand for rehabilitation of families displaced by the Pavana dam project. They said it has been over 56 years since the dam was built in 1970, but several project-affected families are yet to be rehabilitated. According to them, displaced families were promised four acre of land as compensation — two near the dam and two elsewhere in the district. However, it remains unfulfilled.
