A 28-year-old woman was crushed under the wheels of a trailer after her bike skid on sand and pebbles used to fill potholes on Pune-Goa road near Karnala Bird Sanctuary on Friday.
The accident took place at 8.30 a.m. when Bhagyashree Shinde, a resident of Ghansoli and an empolyee with Airtel, was heading towards Panvel after celebrating the Ganesh festival at her native place at Apta in Pen.
Santosh Thakur, a social worker from Panvel, said, “It was not the girl’s mistake. The bad condition of the road led to her death.” He said Shinde lost control of the bike while riding over a patch of pothole-ridden road that authorities had covered with sand and pebbles. She fell off her bike and the driver of the trailer, which was behind her, could not apply the brakes in time.
Driver arrested
The Panvel Taluka Police arrested the driver, Ram Naresh Surendra Kumar Bind, for rash driving. Senior Police Inspector Maloji Shinde said, “If the agency responsible for maintaining the road is found guilty, we will register a case.”
Mr. Thakur said, “The Pune-Goa road was seeing heavy traffic owing to the Ganapati festival. The authorities conveniently filled the potholes with sand and pebbles as many vehicles were heading for the Konkan region.” Mr. Thakur said the body was crushed in the accident and passerby could not retrieve her wallet and phone to identify her and contact her family.
He said, “The bike had a sticker of the store from which it was purchased. We contacted the store and using the chasis number of the vehicle we were able to identify the driver and her contact details. Her family in Thane was then informed about the accident.”
Mr. Thakur said that the police reached the accident spot only after a hour and half after they were called, while the ambulance never arrived despite dialling 108. The body was taken to Panvel Municipal Hospital with the help of an ambulance belonging to the Yusuf Meherally Trust. Following the accident, angry residents of nearby areas staged a rasta roko. The police later arrived and dispersed them.
Mr. Thakur said, “This area witnesses many accidents due to the bad condition of roads. The death of the girl angered everyone. I hope authorities fix the roads and look into the matter seriously.”