Mumbai: Eastern Freeway In Darkness For Months; BMC Engineer Vidyadhar Mhatre Says, 'No Permission To Speak' Amid Rising Safety Concerns
The lives of thousands of motorists who are using the Eastern Freeway are risk since the BMC has not found time to make the street lights working. About 200 mtrs on either side of the tunnel through which the freeway passes have been in dark for the past several months. When asked about this by the FPJ on Tuesday, deputy chief engineer (mechanical & electric) Vidyadhar Mhatre "Please have mercy on me. I don't have the permission to speak." The question is who in the BMC will be responsible if an accident takes places because of the darkness? On the north-bound side of the tunnel there the road bifurcates into two with one arm leading to Navi Mumbai and the other to Chembur. If a motorist failes to see the divider, then he is sure to end up in a major accident
The Eastern Freeway is an important link which connects the eastern suburbs to south Mumbai. And for the past several months the street lights at the abovementioned spot have not been working and even inside the tunnels the lights work erratically.
On either side of the tunnels, as many as 80 lights are not working. The FPJ has been highliting this crucial issue. However, the BMC appears to be having its own priorities.
All that the BMC has to do is fit new bulbs. Adani Electric says all the lights in its jurisdiction are working. The problem is with the section of the road which is being serviced by the BMC. The freeway was built by MMRDA and handed over to the BMC in 2015.
After this newspaper had reported on June 26 the issue of defunct street lights in several sections of the 16.8 km long freeway, the authorities found 12 locations where the lights were non-operational. However, two stretches of the road on either side of the tunnels continue to be in dark. making it one of the most dangerous roads in the city.
The officials from the BMC acknowledged that the streetlights in this section have been defunct for several months, and the work of installing new lights will take three more months. “The tunnel and some 100 to 200 meters of road on both ends remained under the MMRDA even after the eastern freeway was handed over to the BMC for operations and maintenance years ago. The said section was recently handed over by MMRDA to BMC, and the civic body is now fully responsible for ensuring that facilities like streetlights are working. Due to the handover process, the operations of the defective streetlights have been delayed. However, the BMC has floated a tender for it,” an official said who did not wish to be named.
While the officials from the mechanical and electrical department of the BMC said, “The eastern suburb section of this office had floated the tender for the tunnel and road on both ends. The installation of new lights inside the tunnel is about to be completed, but on the road will probably take three more months.” However, the official added that they will try to complete the work within a month.
Manish Hiranandani, a resident of Chembur and a regular commuter on the freeway said, “It is unbelievable that these many months are needed to simply install bulbs. During the monsoon, water accumulates on the sides of the freeway, and due to poor visibility, driving becomes riskier. Why does the authorities need three more months to repair or install new lights?”
Apart from the dark roads, the motorists also complain about the lack of action against the rampant usage by two-wheelers on the freeway. Only light motor vehicles and buses are allowed on the freeway.
The signal-free eastern freeway, which connects south Mumbai from P D’mello Road to the Ghatkopar-Mankhurd link road, was constructed by MMRDA and handed over to the BMC in 2015. The road is preferred by lakhs of motorists daily to reach the eastern suburbs.
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