Vashi police for the first time has registered a case against an officer of the Public Works Department (PWD) over frequent accidents on the Sion-Panvel stretch of Jui bridge. Senior Police Inspector Ajay Landge said, “The case has been registered against the PWD officer responsible for maintaining the accident-prone stretch. We have asked the PWD to provide the name of the officer.”
On Saturday evening, Muddassar Bandagisaab Nagarbavdi (26), a resident of Nerul, died on the stretch when his bike skidded on the bridge’s expansion joint. He fell on the road and was crushed under an oncoming truck. The police later arrested the driver Munna Sripad Bind (40).
The PWD officer and the driver have been booked under Sections 304(A) (causing death by negligence), 279 (rash driving or riding on public way) and 338 (causing grievous hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others) of the Indian Penal Code and Section 184 (driving dangerously) of the Motor Vehicles Act.
Police officers said that the Sion-Panvel stretch was recently expanded and the old and new portions of the road were joined using 70-80 metre-long iron girders. However, a seven-inch gap opened up between the girders.
Police Inspector Satish Gaikwad of Vashi traffic unit said, “Motorists lose their balance and fall when the tyre of their bikes get stuck in the gap.”
Mr. Landge said 11 accidents took place between January 2015 and February 2018, claiming seven lives and injuring five. The police said around 50 letters have been sent to the PWD to take measures to avoid accidents on the stretch.
Bharat Samant, former environment committee member of the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation, has been writing to the PWD for the past two years complaining about the accident-prone stretch. Mr. Samant said, “In past two weeks, two people have died at the spot. I met an officer at PWD office in Chembur and explained the gravity of the problem. Vashi police filing the FIR is a good step. Every day at least two bikers skid on this spot.”
The police said that many minor accidents where bikers fall after their vehicles skid on the stretch go unreported. The police said that while most drivers escaped with minor injuries, some drivers met gruesome deaths. The Vashi police have been sending letters to the PWD to fix the uneven expansion joint on the road. Mr. Gaikwad said, “We have always sending reminders to PWD. If they don’t act now, accidents will continue to take place here.”
