Daijiworld Media Network - Pune
Pune, Jan 19: Several key roads in Pune will remain closed from 9 am to 6 pm on Monday, January 19, due to the ‘Pune Grand Challenge Tour’, an international cycling competition, causing major disruption to traffic and public transport services across the city.
The road closures will significantly impact the Pune Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Limited (PMPML) bus services, with nearly 2,500 bus trips cancelled and over 150 routes diverted, leading to inconvenience for commuters.
The Pune district administration, in association with the Cycling Federation of India, is organising the ‘Pune Grand Challenge Tour’ from January 19 to 24. As part of the event, the ‘Prologue’ race will be held on Monday. The race route includes Khandujibaba Chowk, Namdar Gopal Krishna Gokhale Chowk (Goodluck Chowk), Tukaram Maharaj Paduka Chowk, Lalit Mahal Chowk, Chapekar Chowk, Range Hills Bhausaheb Khude Narayangavkar Chowk (Simla Office Chowk), Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Chowk (Sancheti Chowk), Jhansi Rani Laxmibai Chowk (Balgandharva) and Deccan Gymkhana bus stand.
Due to the event, Fergusson College Road, University Road, Jangli Maharaj Road and all connecting internal roads will remain completely closed to traffic during the specified hours. PMPML’s Deccan bus stand will also remain shut for the day.
As Jangli Maharaj Road and Fergusson College Road will be inaccessible, around 2,500 PMPML bus trips operating on these routes will be cancelled. Some bus services connecting Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad may also remain suspended. PMPML has decided to divert certain buses towards Pimpri via Senapati Bapat Road and Pune railway station. Buses departing from the municipal corporation area will operate towards Pimpri via Pune station, while buses on Karve Road will run only up to Deccan Corner.
The closure of these roads, which house several offices and business establishments, will also restrict private vehicle movement. With offices remaining open, employees are expected to face considerable difficulty commuting.
Around 1,500 police personnel have been deployed across the city to ensure smooth conduct of the cycling event and manage traffic. Traffic restrictions will remain in place from 9 am to 6 pm on Fergusson Road, Jangli Maharaj Road and several central city roads and bylanes.
The security and traffic arrangements are being supervised under the guidance of Police Commissioner Amitesh Kumar and Joint Commissioner Ranjankumar Sharma. Four additional commissioners, senior officers and police staff have been deployed. Bomb detection and disposal squads, quick response teams and surveillance vehicles including ‘Drishti’ will remain on alert.
Meanwhile, the traffic changes have also led to a rescheduling of the final round of the State Sanskrit Drama Competition being held at Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru Cultural Bhavan on Ghole Road. As access roads such as Jangli Maharaj Road and Fergusson Road will be closed, daytime performances scheduled for Monday have been cancelled. Instead, four theatre groups from Sangli, Akola and Nagpur will stage their performances after 6.30 pm, according to coordinator Rahul Lamkhade.