Pune: Farmers Intensify Stir Against Pavana Pipeline, Raju Shetti Calls Long March on Oct 2
Maval, 7th August 2026: Farmers from Maval taluka have intensified their opposition to the proposed closed pipeline project to draw water directly from the Pavana dam, announcing a massive long march on October 2 under the leadership of Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana president Raju Shetti.
Addressing a press conference at the Maval Panchayat Samiti office, Shetti said the march would begin from the site where three farmers were killed in police firing during an agitation against the project several years ago and would culminate at the Pavana dam. He said thousands of farmers are expected to participate in the protest.
Shetti clarified that the organisation is not opposed to supplying water from the Pavana dam to Pimpri Chinchwad city. However, he said farmers strongly oppose the government’s plan to transport water through a closed pipeline instead of allowing it to flow through the riverbed.
According to the farmers, diverting water through a pipeline would significantly reduce the flow in the Pavana river, affecting irrigation as well as drinking water supply for villages across Maval taluka.
Farmer leaders also alleged that some elected representatives from Pimpri Chinchwad and Maval were pushing the project to facilitate corruption worth hundreds of crores in its execution. They claimed the project was being imposed on local residents despite widespread opposition.
The protesters also highlighted the long-pending rehabilitation of families displaced by the Pavana dam. They said that although more than 56 years have passed since the project began in 1970, many dam-affected farmers are still awaiting rehabilitation and have been forced to fight for their rights for generations.
The farmers further alleged that the state government was planning to lease hundreds of acres of land around the Pavana dam to large industrialists while failing to address the demands of the original landowners and project-affected families. They said the move had triggered widespread anger in the region.
Besides Shetti, Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana spokesperson Yogesh Pandey, Prakash Tatya Balwadkar, Dnyandev Sonawane, office-bearers of the Pavana Dam Action Committee and several farmers were present at the press conference.
The announcement of the October 2 march is expected to increase pressure on the administration, with the proposed protest likely to draw attention across Maharashtra.
