A Dam Good Weekend

Punekars have a new getaway, and it's not Goa or Karjat, but quiet waters just outside the city

- By PALLABI DEY PURKAYASTHA

(From above) tourists riding a boat; a local enjoying the view

A quiet transformation is reshaping Pune's weekend culture.

Stepping away from the keyboard chatter and city traffic, Punekars are finding solace in the serene backwaters on the city's outskirts. Beyond the sugarcane fields and sleepy villages, where the horizon melts into glassy waters and sunlit hills, more and more residents are discovering peace along the tranquil shores of Pune's vast, calm dams.

It's called dam tourism. What started as a local secret some 15-20 years ago has evolved into one of Pune's most organic travel movements, with residents seeking calm waters and open skies just 30-40 minutes from their doorsteps. "Only locals used to frequent this stretch in the past. Now, people from West Bengal, Karnataka and other states also come just to see the sunset," a local street-food vendor Vinod Gorakhnath Desai points out.