Hinjewadi Metro Line 3 to open on November 3, PM to inaugurate it by video link

Pune's Hinjewadi-Shivajinagar Metro Line 3 is set to open to the public on November 3, after years of missed deadlines. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the corridor through video conferencing, while Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis will be present at the venue, the Balewadi stadium. Officials of the Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority (PMRDA) confirmed the plan on Monday.

The line is 23.3 km long, runs on an elevated track and has 23 stations. It links the Rajiv Gandhi Infotech Park in Hinjewadi with Shivajinagar, one of the city's main commercial and administrative centres. Passenger service is expected to start on the day of the inauguration, with 17 of the 23 stations open to commuters.

PMRDA Commissioner Abhijeet Choudhary said the authority had been told to have everything ready for the day. "We have been asked to keep everything ready for November 3. The Prime Minister will join online, while the Chief Minister and other dignitaries will be at the venue," he said.

The date was settled after a Monday meeting between PMRDA officials and representatives of the project company, which went over the state of the corridor and the arrangements for the launch. A senior official said, "We discussed the readiness of the project and the operationalisation of the route fixed for November 3."

On the safety front, the Commissioner of Metro Rail Safety (CMRS) has cleared 17 stations for passenger use. Inspection of two more stations near Balewadi is over, and their approval is expected shortly. Four stations, namely RBI, Simla Chowk, Mahabaleshwar Chowk and Baner, are still waiting for clearance. The authority is also trying to finish the pending work at stations 13 and 14 before the event. The remaining stations will open once approvals come through and work is completed.

The formal announcement of the programme is expected within two days. It had been held up by the model code of conduct for the Legislative Council elections, which also added to the uncertainty over the date.

The event will do more than open the line. Foundation stones will be laid for Line 4, which will run from Khadakwasla to Kharadi, and for extensions of Line 2 from Ramwadi to Wagholi and from Vanaz to Chandani Chowk. A connecting link between Line 2 and Line 4 from Nal Stop to Manik Baug is also part of the programme. Maha-Metro will perform the bhoomi pujan of its Phase 2 projects at the same event, part of a wider effort to extend the metro network and improve connectivity in the city.

The corridor is being built by PMRDA and Pune IT City Metro Rail Limited on a public-private partnership (PPP) model. It is described as the country's first metro corridor built on this model under the Centre's 2017 Metro Rail Policy. The estimated cost, including land acquisition and shifting of utilities, is about Rs 8,313 crore.

The project has slipped repeatedly since work began. The first target was March 2025, but permissions for barricading, utility shifting and other construction work caused delays. The deadline moved to September 2025 and then to March 2026, with a shortage of labour and trouble in the supply of materials making matters worse. Officials had earlier planned a phased opening, with 12 stations in the first section, but the inauguration was pushed back again and again while the safety approval from the CMRS was awaited.

Frustration has been building among commuters, particularly IT professionals, who still depend on crowded roads to reach Hinjewadi, where congestion is severe at office peak hours. On Sunday, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray demanded that the state government open the section that already has safety approval, without waiting for a formal ceremony.

The metro is meant to be an alternative to the road for the thousands of people working in Hinjewadi's tech parks who travel to and from central Pune every day. A Rs 426 crore plan for better roads, traffic management and last-mile connectivity in the IT hub has also been approved, which should make it easier for passengers to reach the stations once services begin.