Wait on for widening of Cloud 9 slope, residents upset with resurfacing job

Pune: Residents of NIBM Road are waiting since 2016 for the Cloud 9 slope to be lowered and the stretch to be widened. Even after getting the required permission from the forest department, both the works are yet to be carried out. Instead, only the resurfacing work has been done.
“Resurfacing work has been carried out 2-3 times in the last two years.While the slope itself is a high climb for vehicles, many of which get stuck in the middle, causing more damage to the already poor state of the road. The resurfacing work is a waste of taxpayers’ money as the quality of repair is not sustainable due to plying of heavy vehicles, such as water tankers,” said Priya Singh, a resident of NIBM Road.

“With new residential and commercial complexes coming up in the area, there is a significant increase in traffic for which there is an immediate need for the slope to be widened and lowered. It is very difficult for two-wheelers to take the route as the road is damaged at several spots,” said Sonal Sharma, another resident of the area.
According to the proposal submitted to the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC), the slope is supposed to be lowered to 3ft and widened to 24 metres. Nanda Lonkar, the former corporator from the area, said last month that a budget of Rs 3 crore had been sanctioned for the project, and work was set to start in the last week of November. However, only the resurfacing work was carried out, which has suffered damages again.
Avinash Kamthe, junior engineer, road department, PMC, said, “There is no standing committee to sanction the tender. It will be done by the PMC commissioner. Permissions were received from the forest department and only administrative approval is awaited on the project.”