Thane citizens call on civic body to heed safety

Thane roads have quite literally turned into a death trap for commuters as the ongoing metro work, combined with dug up service roads have caused two fatalities in the last week. Meanwhile, another was injured due to congestion on the road.

First on January 19, Richard D'souza (46), an architect and Kolshet resident, was riding his Harley Davidson on the service road near D-Mart towards Thane when he tried to overtake a truck from the right and instead slipped and was run over. He succumbed to his injuries on Saturday.

Then on January 11, another biker from Bhiwandi named Swapnil Suresh Gulvi, 24, died near Vidyapeeth road at Chitalsar on GB road. "He was driving from Thane towards GB Road and tried to overtake a truck. However, he fell down and the truck ran over him. He died on the spot," says an officer from Chitalsar Manpada police station "Due to metro and other civic work on GB Road, the road has narrowed down resulting in such accidents," he adds.

Thane residents, meanwhile, have called on the civic body to ensure safety of citizens. "There should be more patrolling. Sign boards should put up on roads where work is in progress. Potholes should be immediately repaired for smooth passage of vehicles," says Kasber Augustine, president, Thane Citizens Foundation.

When contacted, TMC commissioner Sanjeev Jaiswal said, "This issue pertains to traffic as allowing heavy traffic or not has to be weighed against the other options available if any."