District Collector Calls for Detailed Safety Planning for Pune Grand Tour Cycle Race

Pune, 8th January 2026: District Collector Jitendra Dudi has emphasised the importance of meticulous planning to ensure safety and smooth execution of the upcoming ‘Bajaj Pune Grand Tour’ international cycling race, scheduled from January 19 to 23. He highlighted the critical roles of the police, health, and roads departments in managing the event.

Speaking at a coordination meeting reviewing preparations, Dudi said, “Roads along the race route must be clean and safe. Health teams should be strategically positioned along the route. The police department must raise public awareness about road closures and alternate routes, and ensure that detailed planning prevents any accidents on the course.”

The meeting was attended by District Planning Officer Kiran Indalkar, race director Pinaki Baisak, and heads of various district departments.
Dudi further instructed the health department to collect information on hospitals and medical facilities within a 25 km radius of all deployed health teams.

He called for deep cleaning of the roads and early placement of signages to guide participants. To prevent animals from straying onto the route in rural areas, Dudi directed the formation of volunteer teams involving the Animal Husbandry, Forest, and Panchayat departments, alongside local volunteers, to conduct awareness drives in villages.

Mock drills for the race are scheduled for January 12 and 18. Dudi advised coordinated planning between Pune, Pimpri-Chinchwad, and rural police units to finalise routes and ensure preparedness. Rural cleanliness drives should be conducted, and village-level arrangements must be made for proper hospitality for participants. The education and sports departments were instructed to estimate the number of volunteers required, and the Food and Drug Administration was asked to inspect the quality of food and beverages available along the route.

During the meeting, updates were received from the Public Works Department, Pune Municipal Corporation, Pimpri-Chinchwad, Purandar and Baramati authorities, as well as representatives from police, health, sports, forest, tourism, food and drug administration, National Highway Authority, Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority, and municipal corporations regarding their preparations for the event.