Pune: The Khadak police in Pune have registered a case against a borewell contractor and a homeowner for allegedly drilling above an underground Metro line near Shivaji Road on March 14. The drilling reportedly caused damage to the tunnel structure near Mandai Metro station, part of the underground corridor between Shivajinagar and Swargate.
Hole in tunnel roof
Police said the drilling created a hole of around six inches in diameter in the Metro tunnel, located 80 to 100 feet below ground. Officials warned that the drilling posed a serious risk to the safety of the Metro line.
“Metro official lodged a complaint with the police. They have sealed the borewell opening both at the ground level and at the roof of the metro tunnel. This poses a risk to the metro line,” senior inspector Shashikant Chavan told TOI.
The complaint was filed by Maha Metro officer Shantanu Gorata under Sections 125 and 324 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, related to negligent acts endangering life and mischief. Police said both the contractor and homeowner were aware of the underground Metro alignment but proceeded with the drilling.
Metro issued warnings earlier
Maha Metro officials said they had already been cautioning agencies and citizens about drilling near tunnel alignments.
Chandrashekhar Tambhavekar, head of the public relations department of Maha Metro, said, “We were notifying the groundwater survey agency and the civic administration to take precautions while digging borewells along Metro tunnel alignments.”
Homeowner denies wrongdoing
The homeowner, Dhananjay Mote, denied the allegations, stating that the drilling was limited.
He said, “We found water at a depth of about 24 feet. We did not drill deeper and were unaware how the drilling could have hit the metro tunnel roof.”
He added, “The next day, metro officials visited the site and filled the old hand pump pipe. Without further discussion, they lodged a criminal case against us. We are not criminals. The authorities should have discussed the matter with us, but no one listened to our grievance.”