After a grisly mishap involving a car and a truck claimed the life of 66-year-old mother of a Katraj-based construction businessman on January 20, the authorities woke up to the hazards on the Mumbai-Pune expressway and rebuilt the fencing of the Mumbai-Pune expressway that was broken illegally at Gahunje to provide passage to the Gahunje stadium. However, over 15 spots where broken fencing permits trespassing on the expressway making a ride on it hazardous for toll paying motorists, still lay unattended.
This came to light when a DNA team went and inspected the expressway on Monday. The DNA team noticed that the compound wall as well as wire mesh fencing that was constructed to secure expressway from tresspassers and strays had been broken at several places and even banned vehicles like two-wheelers were using the expressway.
Reconstruction of wall near Gahunje stadium MSRDC through IRB has constructed fencing on both sides of the expressway to prevent trespassing. However, ever since the construction of the new cricket stadium started at Gahunje village, about 35 kilometres from Pune, the fencing was broken for the easy passage of the trucks carrying raw material. Later, MSRDC constructed a concrete wall along the expressway to prohibit entry of trucks from expressway to Gahunje stadium.
The truck drivers continue to use that illegal road by breaking the concrete wall and making passage for the trucks to carry raw material. A right turn on the expressway is not allowed for heavy vehicles. Only ambulances and police vehicles are allowed to take a right turn only in case of emergencies. However, the trucks were still bluntly taking the right turn until the accident took place in front of Gahunje stadium on January 20. A truck carrying a roller was taking an illegal right turn to go to Gahunje stadium when a Katraj-based building contractor Ujefa Vakharia who was travelling in a car with his parents and two workers, banged his car into the truck. Ujefa’s mother Salma was killed in the mishap.
The accident forced MSRDC officials to take action on the illegal passage towards the Gahunje stadium from the expressway and they instructed the contractor to reconstruct the concrete wall.
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