Title - Work on Akurdi station subway to resume

PUNE: The Pimpri Chinchwad New Township Development Authority (PCNTDA) is expected to complete the construction work of the subway near Akurdi railway station soon, with the authority resuming the construction work within a fortnight. The construction work was started in early 2010. The PCNTDA had been awaiting permission for digging below the railway tracks.Vasant Patil, executive engineer, PCNTDA, said a meeting was held recently with railway officials to resume work on the subway construction. The railway officials have directed the PCNTDA to take more precautionary measures while digging below the railway tracks. Patil said the authority has sent a report to the railways about the measures that will be taken to prevent any fall of debris below the tracks. "We expect the railways to grant us permission to start digging below the tracks for the subway in 10 days," he said.For the subway, two tunnels will be dug below the railway tracks using push box technology. Two boxes are ready to be installed. The soil below the tracks is to be slowly dug up and the boxes are to be inserted below the tracks. The railways will allot the PCNTDA the days on which digging has to be conducted, during which movement of trains will be closed, from 1 to 4 pm on these days as a precautionary measure.The bids for the subway project were invited in March 2010 and the work order was given in May 2010. The cost of the project was Rs 8.10 crore and had to be completed in 15 months. The new subway, with a width of 40 metres with two lanes, will be useful for light commercial vehicles, cars, rickshaws and two-wheelers commuting from Akurdi towards Ravet, Chinchwad, and Dehu Road-Katraj bypass. At present, a small railway bridge located near the new subway site is the access route for people to go across the railway line. However, the access route gets waterlogged during monsoon.