Mumbai: BMC fixes divider at Oshiwara where delivery boy was killed

Divider fixed after mid-day report on accident at spot; locals claimed they had complained many times about the dangerous divider

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has fixed the divider at Oshiwara, where a Zomato delivery boy was killed last month when a 19-year-old student lost control of his Mercedes. The car had climbed the divider and hit the 19-year-old boy's bike.

Locals said a large section of the divider had been removed and this caused accidents; the concrete divider after it was restored by BMC

The BMC has also kept a red fibre divider before the concrete divider to make it easily visible to drivers to avoid accidents. The BMC action comes after mid-day's report on the incident on December 19, Teen held after his speeding Mercedes kills Zomato Delivery Boy, in which it was highlighted that locals had complained several times about the dangerous divider.

Locals claimed a large section of the divider had been removed and this caused accidents, as drivers would suddenly see the rest of it. They said they did not know who had removed part of the divider.

Locals claimed to have made many complaints to the Oshiwara police and the BMC, seeking restoration of the divider. A local claimed that they even keep big drums at the divider to ensure that drivers saw it and slowed down.

On December 18 at 2.30 am, Taiffur Tanvir Shaikh, a resident of Lokhandwala, was driving his Mercedes and had two relatives in it, when between Vaibhav Circle and P Tandon Road, he accidently drove over the divider and lost control.

A shopkeeper from the area said, "We saw many incidents at this spot and the police always come to check the CCTV cameras which we have installed outside our shops. We also wrote letters to the police station and BMC to fix this divider. Finally after many years they have restored it and even put up a sign."

The incident

On December 18, 2020, Satish Parashnath Gupta, a Zomato delivery boy and resident of Adarsh Nagar in Jogeshwari West was returning home after delivering food in Oshiwara when Shaikh's car climbed on the divider, and hit Gupta's bike on the opposite side of the road. Gupta's head got stuck between the wheel and the bonnet and he was dragged for around 50 metres. Shaikh immediately hired a rickshaw and rushed Gupta to Kokilaben Hospital where he was declared dead. Gupta had taken up the job two days before.

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