The land purchase for the 172-kilometre Pune ring road is likely to be delayed, with the state government instructing the district administration to adjust the land compensation rates based on land transactions between 2017 and 2019, but excluding those between 2020 and 2021. The outer ring road is being built to relieve traffic congestion on the city's roads. It is expected to be completed by May 2026, with land acquisition completed by September. A total of 1,900 hectares of land will be acquired from 87 villages for the route, which will reduce heavy vehicle traffic on city streets. The projected ring road's land acquisition would be done in two stages. According to a Pune district land acquisition officer, the state government has asked the district administration to adjust the compensation rates because land transactions were lower during the Covid era. Previously, compensation rates for land acquisition were determined based on land sale transactions within the same time period. We have to revise the rates considering all the transactions carried out between 2017 and 2019. The transactions were higher than in the Covid years. We have a mammoth task in front of us as we have to again collect data from all the property registration offices for this period, said a district administration official. The Pune administration had finalized the compensation rates for the western alignment of the ring road earlier this year. The officials then declared that landowners would receive an average of Rs 3.7cr per hectare, that the payment procedure would begin, and that the administration would take ownership of the land. However, with the latest notification, this will have to wait, according to a land acquisition officer. Rates would most likely be greater during pre-Covid eras because transactions were higher. Pune district collector Rajesh Deshmukh stated that work on re-assessing land charges was underway and that the rates would be determined soon. Previously, the state government had set a September deadline for completing the land acquisition process. However, because the revised tariffs have still to be determined, the source cautioned that it could be postponed even longer. The first phase of the Pune ring road would begin with land acquisition for 35 villages in Maval, Mulshi, Haveli, and Bhor. The proposed Pune ring road will separate urban and local traffic from highway vehicular flow. The road is being built at a cost of Rs 158.57 billion and is expected to be completed this year. The state government has set out approximately Rs 110 bn for land acquisition for the project. The road will be split into two sections. The eastern ring road will run for 74.08 kilometers from Urse on the Yashwantrao Chavan Expressway to Shivare on the Pune-Satara National Highway. The other will be a 65.45-kilometer-long route from Shivare to Urse known as the western ring road. See also: Pune Ring Road, Western Ring Road (PRR-WEST)Govt aims to finish land acquisition for Pune Ring Road by Sept end