The PMC has received a sanction of Rs 99 crore under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) for the construction and improvement of drains to prevent contamination of natural water bodies.
The project includes dredging, channelisation of the riverbed, lake formation in the bed and retaining walls along the banks. The project was approved by the Centre in September 2006 and some work began that year-end. The completion date has been put off many times and the latest date announced by the PMC in its quarterly JNNURM report is June 2011.
According to a civic official in-charge of the project, the delay is due to the non-availability of land to stack the dredged material between Sangam bridge and Bund Garden. “The channelisation of the river bed has been delayed because the civic body is waiting for approval from the irrigation department, although the estimates have been approved. Other components of the restoration work are in the tendering stage," he said. Read the full article here.
Source: Times of India, Pune
