Issue it for motorists’ safety on Feb 14, and a truck driver gets hurt as the vehicle fell into a trench on Feb 15.
The traffic police seemed earnest about the safety of motorists plying on the city roads when they issued an order on February 14 making it mandatory for every contractor to appoint a guard while carrying out construction work in the city.
They failed to monitor that the order is enforced and the result was evident within 24 hours — a truck fell into a trench dug on the busy Katraj Dehu Road bypass, which is a part of the Golden Quadrilateral project, injuring the driver.
This failure of the police in implementing the order of deputy commissioner of police (traffic) Vishwas Pandhare came to notice only when the Chatuhshrungi traffic police filed a formal case against the project manager of the company which failed to take precautionary measures.
Project manager Milind Madhukar Shrirao, 45, has been slapped with the charges of causing danger or obstruction in public way or line of navigation (Indian Penal Code, section 283) and continuance of nuisance after injunction to discontinue (Indian Penal Code, section 291) after assistant police inspector Sanjay Patange of Chatuhshrungi traffic division filed a complaint naming him.
Shrirao works for Logan India Pvt Ltd. The police say the company, which has undertaken the work of widening the road, has dug a 20 feet wide and three feet deep trench to facilitate the work.
Truck driver Raju Kailas Bhagat was going from Chandni Chowk to Wakad check post on the night of February 15. The truck fell into the trench dug near Balewadi stadium gate. Bhagat was injured in the mishap and had to be admitted to a nearby hospital. He is stated to be out of danger.
Just a day before the incident, Pandhare had issued an order making it mandatory for contractors to take precautions at road digging sites to curb mishaps.
Pandhare’s order said many of the road accidents had been taking place due to construction works on road and it had been noticed that the contractors concerned were not following the safety rules.
The order also stated that at times, the works were not completed on time, which resulted in accidents. Pandhare’s order made it mandatory for contractors to set up sign boards, blinkers and reflectors at the sites to caution motorists and also to deploy a guard at the site round the clock. The order also made it mandatory for contractors obtain a no objection certificate from the traffic police before undertaking the road digging work. The contractors were also required to inform the traffic police about the deadline to complete the work.
Patange said, “After the incident, we visited the accident spot and found out that the company that undertook the work had not implemented any safety measures at the site. Neither did it display a sign board, reflectors or blinkers, not did it appoint a guard at the site to caution motorists.’’
However, Shrirao blames it on the truck driver. He says, “The truck driver had overloaded his vehicle with sand and was driving in an inebriated condition.’’ He claimed that the company had put up sign boards, blinkers and reflectors at the site but the truck driver overlooked them all.
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