Villagers take to streets to draw NHAI’s attention to accident zone near Dena Road

Thakor died on the spot. In a separate incident on the same day,a woman from Dena village received serious injuries after a speeding truck hit her while she was crossing the road. Last month,a 22-year-old boy died in a similar accident.

Hundreds of villagers took to streets on Thursday morning and blocked the Express Highway with Thakor’s body to protest against NHAI’s negligence in implementing safety measures at the cross roads.

“Accidents are a daily affair here. There are at least two road mishaps everyday and one death every month. We have repeatedly asked NHAI to take some concrete safety measures,but they have always turned a deaf ear to our requests,” said Narsi Naik,sarpanch of Viroj village.

This is not the first time that these villagers have resorted to road blockade. A speed breaker was installed in the accident-prone area after a similar agitation in June last year. In addition,two private security guards were deployed at the intersection to guide people while crossing the road. The locals,however,allege that the guards are never found doing their duty.

C K Sinha,project director,NHAI,said: “The number of accidents in that area was quite large till last year due to the construction work of bridges. Hence,speed breakers were put up to slow down the traffic. But these speed breakers were removed after the completion of the construction work. Instead,we took other precautionary measures in the accident-prone area. There are no lacunae from our side. Negligence on part of the commuters is a possible reason for the accidents.”

Rakesh Sharma,Assistant Commissioner of Police,said: “Police personnel have been deployed at the site to keep an eye on highway crimes. As far as installation of safety measures on the highway is concerned,it is the responsibility of the NHAI.”