A Slippery Slope: Man dies, BMC rushes to fix Ghatkopar-Mankhurd Link Road

Mohammed Khan, with a photo of his son Yusuf. Pics/Rajesh Gupta

As he inaugurated the Ghatkopar-Mankhurd Link Road on August 1, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray had pointed to its uneven surface. A month later, the shoddy work claimed the life of a 34-year-old two-wheeler pillion rider on Monday. Not just the CM, the traffic department, too, had informed the BMC that the road had seen many accidents. The civic body has now begun repairing a few stretches of the new road.

On Monday afternoon, Mankhurd resident Yusuf Khan died after the two-wheeler on which he was riding pillion skidded on the Ghatkopar-Mankhurd Link Road (GMLR). "He was returning from Kurla CST Road. His friend Akhtar Khan was riding the bike. The two-wheeler hit the sidewall. Yusuf was taken to a nearby hospital but declared dead on arrival. Akhtar has been admitted to Noor Hospital," said an officer from Deonar police.

From Day 1, there have been several accidents on the Ghatkopar-Mankhurd Link Road

Yusuf lived with his wife, father, 4-year-old son, brother and two sisters. His wife is pregnant. "My son had called me around 2 pm and said he was coming back home. Around 4 pm, I got a call from the police and they said he had died in an accident. He died just near my house. I have lost my elder son. Is the police going to take action on the contractors who built such a faulty road? said his father Mohammed Islam Khan.

The distraught father added, "Yusuf had a scrap shop at Bainganwadi and had resumed business just 15 days ago. He was the only earning member of our family. I don't know how to run the family now." Yusuf's uncle Mohammed Phool Khan told mid-day, "The bridge is entirely faulty, bikes skid on it. We have lost a pillar of our family but nothing will happen to anyone. They shouldn't allow bikes on the bridge till the road is fixed."

The 2.9-km-long road was opened for the public after much delay. While the CM appreciated the BMC for completing it, he didn't appear happy with the quality. He had even asked civic chief IS Chahal to personally look into it. The bridge cuts the travel time from Ghatkopar to Mankhurd by 25 to 30 minutes.

Proving the CM's concerns, Day 1 started with a vegetable van turning turtle. Between August 4 and 30, the road has seen eight accidents, including the death of Yusuf and injuries to many. It has also seen 22 minor mishaps, said cops.

On August 5, the Mankhurd Traffic Division wrote to the BMC, raising a red flag. "We had informed BMC engineers about the need for control devices to maintain vehicular speed below 50km/hr. CCTV surveillance, rumblers at regular intervals, lane marking. But nothing happened. In fact, thieves are removing nuts and bolts and other metal stuff from the bridge which may cause serious accidents," said a traffic official on condition of anonymity.

Kishore Shinde, in-charge of Mankhurd Traffic division said the local police and BMC should look into the concerns raised by his department.

‘Something isn't right'

Shivaji Nagar resident Sajid Khan said, "I have taken this bridge since its opening but many times I have felt something is not right with the road. Once my bike skidded. I stopped and checked the road for any oil spillage, but there was nothing. The problem is with the road not with the riding of people."

Prabhu Nadar from Dharavi who had gone to Navi Mumbai and returned on August 29 morning, said, "I saw some Scooties skidding. Traffic cops were asking us to slow down. My Scooty is brand new, I immediately stopped and parked it on the side. But suddenly a car came and knocked me down. My right leg is fractured. There were 5 to 6 people who sustained injuries that time after their scooters skidded."

Yusuf's death prompted Twitteratis to complain about the road. Filmmaker and actress Pooja Bhatt wrote, "It did not seem like a flyover that was recently built. Way too much wear and tear in the first few days of opening itself. Why are contractors allowed to get away with this?" User Alok Badri wrote, "I was on this bridge only 2 days back. The work is so shabby. The contractor should be charged with manslaughter and put behind bars."

BMC has already penalised the contractor for Rs 40 lakh over the delay in completing the bridge. The construction of the R576-crore flyover started in 2016 and it was supposed to be ready on January 1, 2019. But it got delayed and the cost zoomed to Rs 714 crore.

Following Yusuf's death, BMC scurried to fix it. "An urgent meeting was called and it was decided to do some milling (removing some layers of the road). It will be done on Tuesday night or Wednesday," said a source from the civic body.

Satish Thosar, BMC's chief engineer (bridges), said, "According to me there is no problem with the surface of the road. Overspeeding and rains have resulted in accidents. Still, we are looking at what we can do to improve the surface quality. Local BMC officials have decided to do some road milling."

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No. of major accidents on the new road since its inauguration