Anand Mahindra Praises Pune Civic Body For 'Repairing & Upgrading' Footpaths: 'They Aren’t Add-Ons To Roads'

Mahindra Group Chairman Anand Mahindra on Wednesday praised the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) for "repairing and upgrading" footpaths across the city.

Taking to X (formerly Twitter), the PMC shared pictures and said that it was repairing the damaged footpaths. The post read, "Pune is undergoing a transformative metamorphosis under the leadership of the Pune Municipal Commissioner, Naval Kishore Ram. With pedestrianisation as a top priority, PMC has committed to repairing all damaged footpaths across the city by December 2026, making Pune safer and more walkable for everyone."

Commenting on the post, Mahindra lauded PMC's initiative. He wrote, "Good to see @PMCPune taking concrete steps to repair and upgrade footpaths across the city."

He added, "Last November, I wrote about how well-designed, continuous pavements can transform urban life, often faster and at far lower cost than big-ticket projects. Footpaths aren’t add-ons to roads. They are the most democratic layer of a city. They mean safer streets, walkable neighbourhoods, healthier citizens, and more vibrant local businesses. A town planning policy of 'Footpaths First' essentially puts ‘People First’."

The PMC has launched a footpath repair project after a survey found that about 42 kilometres of them are in poor condition. "The administration will follow the urban street design guidelines to build the footpaths. A model footpath was developed to start the project," said Aniruddha Pawaskar, head of PMC's road department.