With the virtual inauguration now scheduled, the city of Pune looks forward to the long-awaited opening of this Metro stretch.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to virtually inaugurate the Pune Metro line between Shivajinagar District Court and Swargate on Sunday, September 29, according to Murlidhar Mohol, Pune MP and Union Minister of State for Civil Aviation and Cooperation.
In addition to inaugurating this Metro line, PM Modi will also lay the foundation stone for the Swargate-Katraj Metro stretch on the same day.
Modi was initially scheduled to visit Pune on Thursday to flag off the Metro corridor and announce development projects worth Rs 22,600 crore. However, the visit was canceled due to heavy rains in the city.
Mohol confirmed the virtual inauguration via a post on X (formerly Twitter), saying, "Hon. PM Shri Narendra Modi ji will be inaugurating the Shivajinagar District Court-Swargate stretch of Pune Metro and laying the foundation stone of the Swargate-Katraj stretch virtually on 29th September."
Although preparations were made for the Prime Minister's visit at the SP College ground in Pune, the event had to be postponed due to the weather.
Following the cancellation, Supriya Sule, Baramati MP, and NCP (SP) leader, suggested that Modi opt for an online inauguration, mentioning that he had already inaugurated the same project multiple times. Meanwhile, Pune NCP (SP) chief Prashant Jagtap criticized the delay, threatening that the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) leaders would open the Metro line to the public if the government didn't act by Friday.
Jagtap argued that the Metro line was ready but kept shut, as the government waited for the Prime Minister's inauguration. Jagtap claimed that the Metro route was kept shut despite being ready only because the government was waiting for the PM to inaugurate it.
With the virtual inauguration now scheduled, the city of Pune looks forward to the long-awaited opening of this Metro stretch. The move marks an important step in easing traffic congestion and improving urban transport infrastructure in the city. Despite political disagreements, the inauguration sets the stage for further developments in Pune's metro network, bringing much-needed connectivity to its citizens.
(This article is a reworked version of a PTI feed)