Delayed Promise

Pity the commuter in Pune. For years, the daily journey from the heart of Shivajinagar to the glass-and-steel technology campuses of Hinjawadi has been a sheer endurance test. A city whose exploding population and vehicle numbers have outpaced its road infrastructure has become synonymous with traffic snarls and an increasingly exasperated workforce. The long-awaited inauguration of Pune Metro Line 3, the 23-km Pink Line connecting Hinjawadi with Shivajinagar costing Rs. 8,313 crore, by Prime Minister Narendra Modi is therefore a welcome milestone. It is also a reminder of how painfully long it takes to deliver essential urban infrastructure in India.

One of Maharashtra’s principal technology and employment centres, Hinjewadi’s growth has long been undermined by inadequate transport connectivity. Thousands of professionals travelling between the IT park and the city have had to contend with congested arterial roads, making what should be an ordinary daily journey an exercise in frustration. A dedicated Metro corridor thus lowers dependence on private vehicles and reduced vehicular pollution. It ought to help Pune retain its competitive advantage as a technology and investment destination.

Yet, the question is why did it take so long? The Pune Metro project received its political launch in December 2018. A concession agreement followed in 2019, but the appointed date for construction came only in 2021. Land acquisition, utility shifting, coordination among agencies and the complications of building an elevated corridor through densely developed commercial areas contributed to the delays.

The project was conceived as a public-private partnership, involving Tata Realty and Siemens, under a design-build-finance-operate-transfer framework. The model was meant to bring private-sector execution and financial discipline to a major urban transport project. Yet the experience demonstrated that private investment alone cannot overcome the institutional bottlenecks of public administration. A combination of weather-related disruptions, scheduling difficulties and the election calendar complicated the final stages. The trains and stations were ready in phases, but the public had to wait for the formal inauguration.

The spectacle of completed infrastructure awaiting political and administrative clearance is hardly an advertisement for efficient urban governance. Reports of rainwater seepage at some stations shortly before the opening also underline the importance of quality control.

There is, nevertheless, much to commend in the Pink Line project. The corridor initially opens 17 of its 23 stations with the remaining stations expected to become operational in phases. Its operation entirely by women train operators is a welcome institutional innovation, while the provision for meeting around 30 percent of its electricity requirements through solar power adds an environmental dimension. These are worthwhile features, though the real test will be passenger safety, punctuality, frequency and the quality of everyday operations.

The Pink Line is a long-overdue beginning. Better late than never, certainly. But the next phase must be better planned, better executed and, above all, delivered on time.