Pune: The long-delayed construction of Baner-Pashan Link Road (BPLR) is expected to resume within a month following a high-level site visit and meeting regarding land acquisition held on Thursday.According to Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) officials, only 200 metres of the 1.2 km road remain to be acquired. Despite the administration having already spent Rs25 crore on previous acquisition attempts, the total land required for the project remains incomplete.To overcome further financial hurdles and accelerate the process, the PMC is now pushing for compensation through transferable development rights (TDR) for the remaining stretch.The BPLR was first included in the PMC development plan (DP) in 1992, but construction partially began in 2014. More than three decades later, the road remains unfinished.“We are working to complete the process as quickly as possible. We expect to have possession of the actual land within a month, and the TDR allocation process will be finalised by then,” said Nikhil More, head of PMC’s land acquisition department.Local residents had pinned their hopes on a Bombay High Court order issued earlier this year, which laid down a time-bound plan directing the Pune district collector to facilitate land acquisition. The BPLR Welfare Trust, a resident-led body, filed a public interest litigation (PIL) after the vital link remained incomplete for decades.Despite its status as a critical connection between Baner, Pashan, Aundh, and Balewadi, the road currently exists largely on paper. Over the last 15 years, the population in these suburbs has grown exponentially, leaving residents to face severe traffic hardships due to the missing link. Residents pointed out that the specific stretch near Jayshree Stores and Kumar Sahavas Society is the final bottleneck preventing completion.“We have been fighting for this road for over a decade, but have received nothing but hollow promises. The citizens deserve relief from this ongoing connectivity crisis,” said Rajendra Chuttar, chairman, the BPLR Welfare Trust.The delay has now led to further legal repercussions. “The authorities have failed to meet the deadlines set by the court. We view this as a contempt of court and have filed a case accordingly. The hearing is expected next month,” said Ravindra Sinha, the petitioner in the case.
