Pune Metro Line 3 connecting Maan-Hinjewadi with Shivajinagar was inaugurated on Tuesday, opening a 23.203-kilometre corridor intended to improve access to the city’s major information technology hub and strengthen links between western Pune and the central city. The event also marked the foundation stone ceremony for four expansion corridors under Pune Metro Phase 2.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the expansion would give fresh momentum to Pune’s development and improve connectivity for the city’s IT sector. He was speaking at the inauguration of the Maan-Hinjewadi–Shivajinagar corridor and the foundation stone ceremony for the next phase of the metro network.
The newly inaugurated Line 3 has 23 elevated stations and was developed under a public-private partnership using the design-build-finance-operate-transfer model. The project cost is reported at ₹8,313 crore. Tata Projects and Siemens were involved in its construction, while land acquisition and viability-gap funding support came through the government framework described at the event.
The corridor directly connects the Hinjewadi IT zone with Shivajinagar. State officials said thousands of employees travel to Hinjewadi every day and can spend between one and two hours in traffic. The new line is expected to provide an alternative to road travel for workers and other passengers travelling between the IT district, Maan, Marunji and central Pune.
The project was described by Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis as the first metro project in the country developed through a public-private partnership. He said the Pune, Pimpri-Chinchwad and Pune Metropolitan Region areas are being developed with a wider transport network that includes metro lines, electric buses, inner and outer ring roads, tunnels and a new airport. The chief minister said the region was expected to become a significant mobility centre by 2030.
The line has also been positioned as a women-led metro corridor. Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Pawar said around 100 women train pilots and women employees accounting for 50% of station staff would be part of the operation. Project information released at the event said 90 women drivers would operate trains on the corridor and that women would account for half of the project workforce.
The inauguration was accompanied by the foundation stone ceremony for four proposed corridors covering about 46 kilometres. These include Khadakwasla–Kharadi, Vanaz–Chandni Chowk, Ramwadi–Wagholi and Manik Bagh–Nal Stop. A separate announcement referred to four Phase 2 corridors covering 31 kilometres and 28 stations, with an approved project cost of about ₹9,858 crore. The proposed network is intended to connect areas including Kothrud, Bavdhan, Viman Nagar, Kharadi and Wagholi.
Union Minister of State Murlidhar Mohol said the Hinjewadi–Shivajinagar corridor would take Pune’s metro network to about 55 kilometres. He also said Pune Metro recorded 958,603 passenger journeys in September. Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said more than nine million passenger journeys had been recorded since the system began operations.
The event also highlighted the need to connect metro stations with surrounding roads and other public transport services. Sunetra Pawar said ₹426 crore had been approved for internal roads leading to stations in the Hinjewadi, Maan and Marunji areas. A special task force led by the district administration has also been formed to address roads, traffic, water, electricity, waste management and metro connectivity in these areas.
Prime Minister Modi said India’s operational metro network had grown from 248 kilometres in 2014 to about 1,200 kilometres, with services running in 26 cities. He said Maharashtra had about 200 kilometres of metro lines in service and more than 680 kilometres under construction. The next implementation milestones for Pune will be the development of the newly announced expansion corridors and the supporting access infrastructure around Line 3 stations.
