Mumbai: At least 20 people were crushed as part of a crane collapsed late Monday in Shahapur of Maharashtra’s Thane district, where work on the third and final phase of the Samruddhi expressway is underway.
This is the third mishap in the course of a month on the under-construction expressway — officially called the Hindu Hrudaysamrat Balasaheb Thackeray Maharashtra Samruddhi Mahamarg — a key project of the Sena-BJP state government.
According to a press note issued by the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRCD) — the nodal agency for the expressway — work on a 2.28 km viaduct bridge was ongoing Monday night when a girder launcher fell off the crane from a height of 35 metres.
A total of 28 people were on the work site at the time of the accident. At least three people suffered serious injuries and were taken to the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Hospital in Kalwa on the outskirts of Mumbai, officials said. They further said that rescuers — including two teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) — are looking for more people feared to be trapped under the wreckage.
The Eknath Shinde government has ordered an inquiry into the incident.
Known as Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis’s pet project, the expressway, at 701 km is the state’s longest. The first phase of the project — a 520-km stretch between Nagpur and Shirdi — was inaugurated in December 2022, while the second phase was opened to the public in May.
The final 100-km phase is scheduled to be inaugurated later this year, according to media reports.
In April 2022, a month before the first phase of the project was scheduled to be inaugurated, a wildlife overpass was found damaged, prompting authorities to postpone the inauguration and reconstruct the structure.
The highway has also been under the scanner for various road mishaps on the stretches that are open for public use. Last month, at least 28 people were killed in two separate road accidents — one involving a bus in Buldhana and the second, a car at Ahmednagar. According to a News18 report, over 350 accidents have taken place on the highway between December 2022 — the month the project was first inaugurated — and April 2023, killing a total of 39 people and critically wounding over 143.
The Opposition has been trying to corner the Shinde government on the subject but the latter claims most of the accidents on the highway have been caused by “human errors”.
Also Read: Fadnavis’ pet project that once sparked BJP-Sena credit war — all about Mumbai-Nagpur expressway
Condolences, compensation
Politicians cutting across party lines offered their condolences over the incident. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is in Pune to receive the Lokmanya Tilak National Award, also announced compensation of Rs 1 lakh to the families of those who died and Rs 50,000 to the wounded.
Pained by the tragic mishap in Shahapur, Maharashtra. My deepest condolences to the families of those who lost their lives. Our thoughts and prayers are with those who are injured. NDRF and local administration are working at the site of the mishap and all possible measures are…
— PMO India (@PMOIndia) August 1, 2023
The state government, meanwhile, announced an inquiry as well as compensation of Rs 5 lakh to the victims’ families.
“What happened is very tragic and our government, along with the relief teams, are on the spot,” Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, who is also in Pune for the award ceremony, told reporters. “I have spoken to the district administration and local authorities. A detailed probe is being ordered.”
Deputy CMs Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar also tweeted their condolences. Ajit Pawar called the incident “unfortunate and painful” and said rescue efforts were being made on “war footing”.
“The death of labourers in an accident that occurred during the third phase of Samriddhi Highway at Sarlambe in Shahapur taluka is very unfortunate and painful. The accident happened when the girder machine and crane fell down while the work of the bridge was ongoing,” he said in a tweet in Marathi. “The injured are undergoing treatment and pray for their speedy recovery. I pay my heartfelt tributes to those who died. Condolences to their families.”
Fadnavis said in a tweet that an investigation had been ordered into the incident. “Some labourers died in an accident in Shahapur taluka during the construction of a bridge on the Samriddhi Highway. (it is) very sad and heart-wrenching. My heartfelt tributes to them. We share their families’ grief.”
Meanwhile, Maharashtra’s Public Works Department Minister Dada Bhuse, who visited the site of the incident, told reporters that the girder machine was “very modern”.
He added: “This was even used previously. So what exactly happened needs to be investigated. The priority is to save people’s lives and the investigation can be followed.”
(Edited by Uttara Ramaswamy)
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