Gahunje village may join Pimpri, Chinchwad

Gahunje village on Pune-Mumbai highway, which shot to limelight due to the newly constructed Subrata Roy Sahara Stadium, is likely to come on the map of Pimpri-Chinchwad.

The village may be merged with Pimpri Chinchwad New Town Development Authority (PCNTDA).

Though Gahunje falls in Pune district, the merger has been proposed due to its proximity to the twin township. PCNTDA’s chief executive officer Dr Yogesh Mhase said that a proposal in this regard has already been sent to the state government.

Since the last few years, there has been a speculation on Gahunje being merged with the PCNTDA, one of the richest government bodies that has nearly Rs500 crore budget to carry out development works in the Pradhikaran area. The decision will help boost the amenities at Gahunje.

Recently, the Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) standing committee too approved the proposal of providing the drainage facility to the stadium at Gahunje.

However, on the other hand, the Pimpri Chinchwad New Town Development Authority has failed to protect properties in its jurisdiction from the red zone issue and encroachments.

Questions are being raised on whether it will be able to sustain the burden of additional load of merging a new area.

Bharatiya Vidyarthi Sena state unit president Sarang Kamthekar said, “The merger has been proposed to further interests of politicians and builders.  The builders’ lobby has purchased land at Gahunje villages and row houses in the area are being sold at the rate of Rs5 crore. However, the area does not have the basic amenities.”

“Though the Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation standing committee has approved the proposal to provide drainage facility to the stadium in Gahunje, there was no need to bear the extra load,” he added.