Pune: Union minister Nitin Gadkari said the construction of Sant Dnyaneshwar and Sant Tukaram ‘Palki Marg’ has been completed and ‘Sant Dnyaneshwar Maharaj Palki Marg’ will be inaugurated by December. He said 42,000 trees have been planted along the four-lane Sant Dnyaneshwar Maharaj Palki Marg from Hadapsar-Diveghat to Mohol and Sant Tukaram Maharaj Palki Marg from Patas to Tondle-Bondle. He said the state government should plant more trees to make them “green highways”. Gadkari also said Union minister of state for civil aviation and Pune MP Murlidhar Mohol had suggested renaming Pune airport as Jagadguru Sant Tukaram Maharaj Airport.
Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Gadkari said, “After talking to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, we passed the naming proposal.” Gadkari said the teachings of Sant Tukaram and Sant Dnyaneshwar have been playing a big role in his life and he tries not to use religion, creed and caste. “I believe a person becomes great by the work he does,” he said. He condemned those who use caste for petty gains. About Pune, Maharashtra’s second largest city, he said scooters, cars and buses should run on ethanol as it is the best way to reduce pollution here.
“In the coming days, aviation fuel should also have ethanol,” the Union minister said. Gadkari said development work worth Rs 1.5 lakh crore would start in Pune district by December. He and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis were here to attend a programme in which several projects were inaugurated. The ‘Palki Marg’ was conceived to provide smooth movement to devotees visiting the pilgrimage site of Pandharpur. About 221 km of Sant Gyaneshwar Maharaj Palki Marg (National Highway 965) from Diveghat to Mohol and 130 km of Sant Tukaram Maharaj Palki Marg from Patas to Tondle-Bondale are being four-laned, with walkways for ‘palkis’ on both sides.
