Yogesh Shah lost his son in a car accident near Godrej Gate on the Eastern Express Highway in March; he got in touch with others who had lost someone at the spot and conducted a ‘shanti puja’ there
A computer engineer, still grieving from his son’s death, has hit upon a unique way of preventing further accidents at the spot that claimed the life of his loved one. There have been 53 accidents at the same spot — resulting in 47 injuries and six deaths since January 2015.
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Relatives perform shanti puja on Vikhroli Eastern Express Highway, near Godrej Gate, where Shah’s son Zeel had an accident in March. Pic/Sameer Markande
“Everybody who came to visit my son at the hospital had a different story to tell about the spot. That made me go deep into the matter and find out the authenticity of the events. When I managed to avail the data from traffic department, I realised that the accidents were taking place at the same spot and it was a worrisome factor,” said Shah.
After his son’s death, Shah took out time to contact the family members of those who had met with a similar fate at the same spot. Around 100 relatives had gathered at the highway for the religious ceremony.
The incident
Shah’s 20-year-old son Zeel was involved in an accident in the wee hours of March 22 while he was on his way to Siddhivinayak temple, Prabhadevi. Zeel, a first year robotics engineering student at N M College, Shirpur, had come home for two days during Gudi Padwa, and was on his way to the temple along with his friends.
Zeel had tried to avoid running over a dog, and lost control of the vehicle. On May 1, Zeel succumbed to the severe head injuries after being in coma for several days. “I am a computer engineer by profession and my wife is a doctor. While we are religious people, we don’t believe in superstitions.
When people told me the stories, I thought there needs to an event that will spread awareness about the importance of taking care at the spot. I created a WhatsApp message and asked Zeel’s friend to circulate it to as many people as possible. I personally contacted some others,” said Shah.
The pooja was overseen by a pandit, an advocate by profession. He decided to take part after receiving a WhatsApp message from Shah. The congregation prayed for the safety of travellers who use the road.
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