State sets three-year deadline to Maha-Metro to complete Shivajinagar bus station project

State government has directed Maha-Metro to complete the MSRTC Shivajinagar bus station project within the next three years

Pune: The state government has directed the Maharashtra Metro Rail Corporation Limited (Maha-Metro) to complete the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation’s (MSRTC) Shivajinagar bus station project within the next three years and return the land at Wakdewadi, where the bus depot is operating, to the Dairy Development Department.

The state government has directed Maha-Metro to complete MSRTC Shivajinagar bus station project within the next three years and return land at Wakdewadi (in pic), where the bus depot is operating, to the Dairy Development Department. (HT FILE)

Ashwini Yamgar, deputy secretary, agriculture department, said on Friday that the three-year deadline is essential for the project’s success.

The two-hectare land of Dairy Development Department at Wakdewadi was temporarily given to Maha-Metro for relocation of the Shivajinagar state transport (ST) station for the metro project to come up at the latter space. The land lease to Maha-Metro granted in January 2019 expired on March 15, 2022, but the property was not returned to the Dairy Development Department as the Shivajinagar ST stand project did not take off.

Maha-Metro completed the Shivajinagar metro station in 2022. An agreement stated that Maha-Metro would develop the Shivajinagar bus station and hand it over to MSRTC, but the project has faced delays.

While Maha-Metro planned to build a commercial complex with the ST stand, MSRTC decided to develop its own bus station. In 2024, MSRTC approached Maha-Metro to undertake the project.

Meanwhile, the state government has approved a three-year extension for lease of 1.72 hectares at Wakdewadi, moving the expiration date to March 15, 2027. Maha-Metro has already returned the remaining 0.28 hectares to the Dairy Development Department.

The government has specified that the land can only be used for metro-related purposes, and any other use requires approval.

Dhananjay Mahajan, general manager, MSRTC, said, “Maha-Metro is finalising plans to develop the Shivajinagar land on a build-operate-transfer (BOT) basis and will float the work tender soon.”

A Maha-Metro official said, “We will carry forward the project once the final plan is ready.”