Pune, 26 February 2026: The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has ordered an immediate halt to a construction project in Kothrud after serious violations of dust-control norms came to light.
The action was taken on the instructions of Municipal Commissioner Naval Kishore Ram following complaints and a viral video showing poor visibility due to heavy dust on Karve Road.
The construction work was underway at Survey Nos. 9 and 10 near Karve Road in the Kaivalya Co-operative Society area, a locality with narrow internal roads. The project is being developed by Kotibhaskar Infra and Developers Private Limited. Authorities found that the developer had failed to implement mandatory dust-control measures at the site.
During construction activities and dumper movement, large amounts of dust spread onto the main road, creating hazardous conditions for motorists. The viral video showed drivers switching on headlights in broad daylight due to extremely low visibility.
Following complaints, Commissioner Ram directed officials to conduct an immediate site inspection and initiate action. Junior Engineer Manojkumar Mate and Deputy Engineer Kiran Kalashetti visited the site and confirmed that dust-control measures were not properly implemented.
Green safety nets were either missing or inadequately installed, and several environmental norms were reportedly ignored.
Officials also noted violations of guidelines issued by the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board. Based on the inspection report and under the orders of City Engineer Aniruddha Pawaskar, PMC issued a stop-work notice to the developer.
Pune Municipal Commissioner Naval Kishore Ram said, “It is mandatory to follow pollution-control norms at construction sites. These rules must be taken seriously. No one will be given any concession for violations. That is why we have issued a notice and ordered the work to stop.”