The Mumbai-Goa Highway Mishap Could Have Been Prevented

If two crucial factors had been taken into consideration, the tragedy could have been prevented.

The remaining portion of washed away Mahad-Poladpur bridge by the flood waters of Savitri river on the Mumbai-Goa highway in Raigad district on Wednesday. (Photo: PTI)

The Mumbai-Goa highway is a known deathtrap. The two-lane highway has claimed around 800 lives in over 3000 accidents in one year alone! The latest mishap over river Savitri could have been avoided if two criteria had been kept in mind.

One: when the MET department sent out alerts about heavy rains in the catchment area of the river, the district administration ought to have put up warning signs on low-lying bridges. Two, the deadline for the expansion of the highway was December 2015. Had it been completed in time, the bridge would have been demolished and replaced long ago.