Ajit Pawar Reviews Ashadhi Palkhi Arrangements, Calls for Urgent Action on Road and Health Facilities

Pune, June 14, 2025: Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar has directed officials to urgently complete all necessary arrangements for Warkaris (devotees) participating in the Ashadhi Palkhi procession to ensure they face no inconvenience. He assured that the state government will provide the required funds for the smooth conduct of the procession.

Chairing a review meeting at the Pune Vidhan Bhavan for the preparations of the 2025 Palkhi processions from Alandi and Dehu, Pawar instructed that amenities must be arranged along the Palkhi route, at halting points, and resting areas, especially considering the monsoon season. Preventive measures should be taken in Divyaghat where landslides are possible, including barricading to prevent stonefall from nearby excavations. Public should also be restricted from gathering along narrow ghat sections.

He emphasized repairing potholes, clearing debris from old Tukaram Maharaj routes at Undavadi and Kadpathar, and expediting work on the Indapur-Pandharpur Palkhi Highway. He instructed that construction material along metro sites be cleared to avoid obstruction.

MSEDCL was asked to keep teams active throughout the route to ensure uninterrupted electricity. Zilla Parishads were directed to deploy generators at halt points, with funds to be provided through the District Planning Committee if needed. Unauthorized hoardings must be removed to prevent accidents during storms, and all official hoardings should undergo structural stability audits.

In light of COVID-19, Pawar asked procession leaders to ensure that devotees with symptoms undergo testing before joining. Health teams should be equipped with medicines and testing kits.

He also launched the ‘PTP Trafficop’ app for traffic coordination, a real-time Palkhi tracking app, and ‘Project Wari’ to digitally record the number of devotees for better future planning.

*Immediately complete the necessary facilities for the Warkaris during the palanquin ceremony- Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar*

*Review meeting for preparations for the palanquin ceremony held in the presence of the Deputy Chief Minister*

Pune, 14th: Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar has directed that care should be taken to ensure that the Warkaris do not face any kind of trouble during the Ashadhi Palkhi ceremony; necessary facilities should be provided at the palkhi base, the place of stay and along the entire palkhi route. He also assured that the government will provide necessary funds for the ceremony.

He was speaking at the review meeting of the preparations for the Shri Kshetra Dehu and Shri Kshetra Alandi Palkhi Ceremony-2025 held at Vidhan Bhavan, Pune. The meeting was attended by Divisional Commissioner Dr. Chandrakant Pulkundwar, Police Commissioner Amitesh Kumar, Pimpri Chinchwad Police Commissioner Vinay Kumar Choubey, Special Inspector General of Police of Kolhapur Range Sunil Phulari, Pune Municipal Corporation Commissioner Navalkishore Ram, Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation Commissioner Shekhar Singh, PMRDA Commissioner Dr. Yogesh Mhase, District Collectors of Pune, Satara and Solapur districts, Chief Executive Officers of Zilla Parishads, senior police officers, etc.

Mr. Pawar said, necessary arrangements should be made for resting and staying places in the backdrop of rain. Care should be taken to ensure that there is no problem in going to the palanquin ceremony if it is raining at the Dive Ghat. Citizens should be prohibited from watching the palanquin in the ghat area. Since excavation is going on along the mountainside, barricading should be done so that stones do not fall on the road due to rain and pose a danger to the warkaris.

The traffic jam on the old Tukaram Maharaj Palkhi road leading to Baramati at Undawadi Kadepathar should be removed, the potholes on the road should be filled, and the work should be completed quickly. The work on the Palkhi highway leading to Indapur should be expedited. It is necessary to expedite the work on the Palkhi highway between Indapur and Pandharpur and all safety measures should be taken until the Palkhi passes. The construction materials on the side of the road due to the PMRDA’s metro work should be removed immediately.

Mahavitaran should keep its team of officers and employees alert and active along the entire palanquin route. The Zilla Parishad and municipalities should immediately clean the route and villages after the palanquin ceremony. The concerned Zilla Parishad should arrange generators for electricity at the stopping places. If required, additional funds will be made available for generators from the District Planning Committee, he said.

To prevent road side billboards from collapsing during storms and causing accidents, unauthorized billboards should be removed immediately. For this, revenue, police officers and local self-government bodies should conduct a joint inspection of the entire route. Shri. Pawar also directed that a structural stability audit of authorized billboards should be conducted.

In the backdrop of the Covid pandemic, the Palkhi ceremony chief and Dindi chief should be contacted and appealed to the Warkaris suffering from cold, fever, cough, etc. to get tested before participating in the Warkaris. He also gave instructions to make necessary arrangements for testing and treatment of Warkaris suffering from such diseases immediately, and to keep medicines with the health teams on the Palkhi route.

Divisional Commissioner Mr. Pulkundwar gave information about the planning made. He said that special planning will be made for a clean and pure Wari.

Police Commissioners Amitesh Kumar and Vinay Kumar Choubey gave information about security and traffic planning. Other District Collectors and senior officers present also gave information about the necessary instructions and preparations made for the palanquin ceremony.

Deputy Chief Minister Shri. Pawar launched the ‘PTP Traffic Cop’ mobile app developed by the Pune Police Traffic Branch. The palanquin tracking app was launched for real-time tracking of palanquins. Also, the computer initiative ‘Project Wari’ implemented by the Pune Police Commissionerate was launched. It was said that since the number of warkaris will be counted under this initiative, it will be used for accurate planning in the future.