PMC Sets Oct 31 Deadline For Excavation On Pune Cycling Race Route; Five-Year Ban Planned

The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has imposed a strict deadline of October 31 for completing utility excavation along the proposed route of the international cycling event set to take place in Pune in January 2027. After this date, no further excavation or road work will be permitted on the designated path, with the civic authorities threatening severe consequences for any companies that fail to meet the deadline or cause damage to the roads.

The decision was made during a joint meeting chaired by Additional Municipal Commissioner (Special) Omprakash Divte on Monday, where officials from the PMC Road Department and representatives from Maharashtra Natural Gas Limited (MNGL), Dinesh Engineering, and other involved companies discussed plans for laying utility lines along the race route.

Divte emphasized the need to explore alternative alignments for utility installations to avoid disrupting the cycling route, and officials will conduct a technical inspection to determine the best approach for executing the work, whether at road level or along the other side of the road. The Road Department engineers and company representatives were instructed to hold a joint site inspection and present a detailed work plan during a meeting scheduled for Tuesday, October 13.

The civic administration has limited the extension of the deadline to rare cases and made it clear that any incomplete work beyond the deadline will be the responsibility of the companies involved, along with any resulting road damage and complications. The PMC has also proposed a five-year restriction on excavation along the route following the completion of current works to maintain road quality and prevent repeated digging, taking into account the defect liability period (DLP).

Larger utility ducts will be installed to accommodate future cable needs, reducing the likelihood of future excavations along the roads. The PMC Road Department will handle the restoration of roads excavated along the route, and officials and companies have been reminded to strictly adhere to standard operating procedures (SOPs) for road excavation.

The administration has warned that companies responsible for compromising road quality or causing damage could face criminal action if necessary. Excavation work may be authorized again along the route after the cycling competition, but only with permission at the Municipal Commissioner's level, subject to potential penalties.