PUNE: Nearly three years after the railway authorities announced the Pune rail yard remodeling project, work has progressed to a mere 10%.
The plan was to increase the length of all the six platforms of the railway station allowing them to accommodate trains with more than 22-23 coaches.
Pune rail division’s public relations officer Manoj Jhawar told TOI that the work has to be completed in four phases and the cost of the whole project rests at Rs 113 crore.
“At present, phase-1 of the project is 10% complete. It will take four months more to be done,” he added.
The project was first talked about in January 2018 by former divisional railway manager Milind Deouskar. Rail officials at different times had said that it will be completed by 2019.
“We faced technical problems, which led to many discussions and deliberations. Some plans had to be drawn up over and over again, one of the reasons for the delay. However, work is now back on track and we are expecting it to be complete in two and half years. The project is important and will change the face of the Pune rail yard and the platforms,” the official added.
A source in the division said the railway yard is on and will provide space for all the platforms to get extended. It will take a while for the project to take shape, the official said.
The authorities had hoped to fast-track work this year, but said the pandemic had brought it to a standstill.
“While fewer trains operating from the station would allow work to be done faster, there weren’t enough workers available from March till July. Many daily-wage workers had gone to their native villages, and we couldn’t take advantage of the sparse train traffic. However, now with more reopening, we are back on track,” another official, who requested anonymity, told TOI.