Chakan infrastructure issues serious, Maharashtra govt working to resolve them: Fadnavis

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis acknowledged serious infrastructure problems in Pune’s Chakan industrial area and assured action to address traffic congestion and inadequate facilities. He said the district collector would coordinate multiple agencies, while Industries Minister Uday Samant denied industries had relocated

Mumbai: Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Friday admitted there were serious infrastructure issues in Pune district’s Chakan industrial area, and assured that his government was working to resolve them.

Maharashtra is home to the highest number of functional firms, he said, speaking two days after at least 20 firms in Chakan industrial area announced that they were going to shift their operations to Khandala because of severe traffic jams and inadequate facilities.

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“The Chakan issue is serious, and we have taken it seriously. It appears that because of five-seven agencies, there is no one responsible for it (solving issues). We are trying to make the (Pune) district collector responsible for it and coordinate all agencies under him, and through that, we will resolve the problems there,” Fadnavis told reporters.

On Thursday, NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar had expressed concern about the situation in Chakan, an automobile manufacturing hub. The CM said he had responded to Pawar’s posts. “Pawar is a senior leader and always thinks about Maharashtra’s interests. Therefore, to ensure that the wrong information does not reach him, I provided correct information,” Fadnavis said. He defended Maharashtra’s record in attracting companies, saying the state had the highest number of industrial units that had started operations and also houses the maximum count of functional firms.

Fadnavis also claimed that some people were deliberately citing the figure of non-functional companies which never commenced operations. Industries Minister Uday Samant said no industry has migrated from Chakan.

“I will be meeting industry representatives to address their issues on August 16…I will try to resolve 90 per cent of their issues,” he said. Pawar, a former chief minister, had said in his posts on X that the decision by 20 companies, which employ more than 2,000 workers, to relocate was a “serious matter”.

He called for infrastructure development on a war footing in Chakan, Talegaon and other industrial estates across Maharashtra, besides immediate measures to address potholes, poor roads and traffic congestion. Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray, meanwhile, targeted the BJP-led government over the issue, and said it was the chief minister’s responsibility to resolve the matter.