MUMBAI: The collector of Thane has told Bombay high court that the death of a biker on July 27 on Ghodbunder Road was not due to potholes and may have occurred due to reckless driving either by the driver of a trailer or the biker himself.
“The road where the accident occurred is made of cement concrete and no potholes were found at the accident site….considering the position of the motorcycle and the trailer on the road, at the accident site, an inference can be clearly drawn that the accident is not due to potholes or stones on the road but it may be attributed to either rash and negligent driving by the trailer driver and/or bike rider as the exact cause cannot be ascertained at this point of time,’’ collector Ashok Shingare’s November 7 affidavit-in-reply stated.
In October, a bench led by Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya had rapped Shingare for not conducting an independent inquiry into the biker’s death allegedly due to potholes. It directed him to conduct a fresh inquiry. The biker’s death issue was taken up during the hearing of a contempt petition filed by advocate Ruju Thakker regarding the non-compliance by municipal corporations of directions in HC’s 2018 judgment in a PIL on bad condition of roads.
Shingare, alongwith a team of seven senior officials including from police (traffic), Thane Municipal Corporation, Public Works Departmentinspected the accident site on October 6. They observed that Ghodbunder Road at the accident site is around 80 feet wide. It is a cement concrete road with a divider and heavy vehicular traffic on both sides. “I did not notice any pothole in and around the area of the accident spot on the said road at the time of the site inspection,’’ Shingare’s affidavit stated. An inspection of 200 meters of road on both sides showed a part of the ghat road coming from Bhayander has a slope with major sharp turns and vehicles coming down at a high speed.
Considering the time gap between the accident and the site inspection, Shingare sought reports from committee members on site conditions on July 27. Kasarvadavali police station said the accident occurred around 7 am when it was raining and there was not much light. Devidas Chavan was on the lane towards Thane when he met with an accident with the trailer. Upon hearing a loud crash, a shop owner and some others rushed to the spot and saw a man lying in a pool of blood between the front and middle tyre of the trailer. The driver was booked for causing Chavan’s death.
The police concluded that the accident was due to high speeding by the trailer driver. PWD said there were no potholes at and near the accident spot. TMC said the street lights were functioning on that day. The Regional Transport Office said the motorbike may have skidded due to wet slippery road or passing through a narrow gap between the road and divider and falling in front of the moving container.
Shingare referred to conclusions drawn by the police, TMC, PWD and RTO ruling out potholes as the cause of Chavan’s death. He said with a view to prevent such “unpleasant incidents” temporary and long term measures have been taken including placing signboards, speed limits, rumblers, anti-crash barriers and CCTV cameras at critical spots.
“The road where the accident occurred is made of cement concrete and no potholes were found at the accident site….considering the position of the motorcycle and the trailer on the road, at the accident site, an inference can be clearly drawn that the accident is not due to potholes or stones on the road but it may be attributed to either rash and negligent driving by the trailer driver and/or bike rider as the exact cause cannot be ascertained at this point of time,’’ collector Ashok Shingare’s November 7 affidavit-in-reply stated.
In October, a bench led by Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya had rapped Shingare for not conducting an independent inquiry into the biker’s death allegedly due to potholes. It directed him to conduct a fresh inquiry. The biker’s death issue was taken up during the hearing of a contempt petition filed by advocate Ruju Thakker regarding the non-compliance by municipal corporations of directions in HC’s 2018 judgment in a PIL on bad condition of roads.
Shingare, alongwith a team of seven senior officials including from police (traffic), Thane Municipal Corporation, Public Works Departmentinspected the accident site on October 6. They observed that Ghodbunder Road at the accident site is around 80 feet wide. It is a cement concrete road with a divider and heavy vehicular traffic on both sides. “I did not notice any pothole in and around the area of the accident spot on the said road at the time of the site inspection,’’ Shingare’s affidavit stated. An inspection of 200 meters of road on both sides showed a part of the ghat road coming from Bhayander has a slope with major sharp turns and vehicles coming down at a high speed.
Considering the time gap between the accident and the site inspection, Shingare sought reports from committee members on site conditions on July 27. Kasarvadavali police station said the accident occurred around 7 am when it was raining and there was not much light. Devidas Chavan was on the lane towards Thane when he met with an accident with the trailer. Upon hearing a loud crash, a shop owner and some others rushed to the spot and saw a man lying in a pool of blood between the front and middle tyre of the trailer. The driver was booked for causing Chavan’s death.
The police concluded that the accident was due to high speeding by the trailer driver. PWD said there were no potholes at and near the accident spot. TMC said the street lights were functioning on that day. The Regional Transport Office said the motorbike may have skidded due to wet slippery road or passing through a narrow gap between the road and divider and falling in front of the moving container.
Shingare referred to conclusions drawn by the police, TMC, PWD and RTO ruling out potholes as the cause of Chavan’s death. He said with a view to prevent such “unpleasant incidents” temporary and long term measures have been taken including placing signboards, speed limits, rumblers, anti-crash barriers and CCTV cameras at critical spots.