PUNE, April 27 -- No additional toll will be levied for using the long-awaited Mumbai-Pune Missing Link project, which is set to be inaugurated on Maharashtra Day on May 1. This was announced by deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde on Sunday. Shinde said the decision to keep the existing toll rates at the Khalapur toll plaza unchanged was taken to ensure that commuters benefited from faster connectivity without added financial burden. "The objective is to reduce travel stress and improve connectivity, not increase costs," he said. The 13.3-km Missing Link will substantially reduce the current travel stretch and time by largely bypassing the congested and accident-prone ghat section of the expressway. The existing 19.8-km route between the Khopoli exit and Sinhgad Institute stretch will be reduced to around 13.3 km, cutting the distance by more than six kilometres and 30 to 45 minutes of travel time between Mumbai and Pune. P5...