Excavation starts at Kasba Peth station in Pune

After completing excavation and tunnelling under the Mutha river on the Civil Court-Kasba Peth stretch in Pune, MahaMetro has now put into service the two tunnel boring machines (TBM) to excavate towards the Kasba Peth station, which is the next stoppage on the underground stretch. For tunnelling under the Mutha river, MahaMetro started work at the beginning of April and reached the other side of the river after completing 240-metre-long tunnels 13 metres below the riverbed. No hurdles were experienced during the tunnel work below the river as the stretch had an unbroken basalt rock foundation. This turned out to be the first underwater tunnel constructed in Pune. A detailed plan is in place to complete the excavation at the earliest. Both the TBMs progressed according to the plan and reached the other side of the river. One TBM has completed an excavation of 240 metres, while another has covered 223 metres. The tunnels are placed about 18 metres below the ground level while crossing the river. The Metro's underground stretch begins from the Agriculture College grounds. It is aligned via Shivajinagar, Civil Court, Kasba Peth, Budhwar Peth and Mandai up to Swargate. The Metro would cross rivers in Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad at three more locations through elevated bridges.