Sardarpur (Madhya Pradesh): Indore-Ahmedabad National Highway’s 50-km stretch between Sardarpur and Machiliya Ghat has turned into Highway of Death.
In the last eight months, the stretch has witnessed eight major accidents, 18 deaths, including two on Thursday, and many injured.
On Wednesday, Gopal Pathak, 28, of Sardarpur, left from Indore at 5 pm. While returning to his native place, his car met an accident near Phoolgawadi village, about three kilometres from Sardarpur, between 2 and 2.30 am.
Driver of a Gujarat Roadways bus observed the car accident and alerted the authorities through Dial 100. During initial investigation, it was discovered that Gopal’s car collided with a road divider and flipped multiple times before landing in an agricultural field.
FP Photo
The rescue team immediately evacuated unconscious Gopal from car and took him to the civil hospital, where doctors declared him death on arrival. Sardarpur police station in-charge Pradeep Khanna said that accidents often occure between 2 am and 2.30 am.
Father last contacted him at 01:30 am
Gopal had gone to Indore to buy clothes. When he did not return home till late in the night, his father, Dinesh Pathak called him at 1.30 am to check on his whereabouts. Gopal told his father that he had taken a brief tea halt at dhaba near Dhar. He further told his father that he had just left the dhaba and would be returning home soon. Gopal's family members shared that he was the only son in a family of three children.
One 22-year-old woman died after a truck loaded with wooden log overturned on a motorcycle on which she was travelling with her husband. She was identified as Tanvi, while her husband Akash, 32, suffered minor injuries. On information, Rajgarh police team reached the spot, removed the wood along with the truck through JCB and retrieved the body. The truck driver escaped from the scene.
17 death in last eight months
On April 10, around 12:30 am, four people were crushed to death by an Eicher truck at Bheruchoki Undeli Ghat. The victims’ were trying to collect spilled wheat.
On April 11, a car hit a bike rider in Mangod, resulting in the death of a youth.
On April 18 at 03:33 am, about one kilometre from Sardarpur tehsil headquarters at Bhopwar four-lane, a car rammed into the trolley from the rear end. The impact was so severe that all three young individuals lost their lives on the spot.
In May, two people died after their motorcycle met with an accident on Mangod Amjhera road.
On the night of June 5, four people, including a woman and two minors, died on the spot when a truck overturned on a bike near Machhaliya Ghat Gundirela.
On June 8, two youths riding a bike were hit by a Scorpio near Mangod on the National Highway, due to which both of them died on the spot.
Only instructions, no implementation after every accident
After the deaths of four people on April 10, Sardarpur SDM Rahul Chauhan on April 11 visited the spot with National Highway officials, had given several corrective instructions to prevent road accidents. But there was no improvement to be made.
After the deaths of three youth in a tragic accident on April 18, the district administration called a meeting of the District Road Safety Committee, brainstormed for hours on April 20 and directed the National Highway officials to rectify the technical errors. But the National Highway It did not appear that the officers had followed any instructions of the administration.
On June 6, 24-hour after death of four people, in-charge SDM Shivam Prajapati, SDOP Ashutosh Patel inspected the National Highway from Sardarpur to Rajgarh, Machhaliya and took immediate action against them. Directed National Highway officials to do the work. But even now, the National Highway officials are sitting idly by and waiting for another major accident to happen.
MLA had also written a letter to the project officer, but to no avail
Sardarpur MLA Pratap Grewal had written a letter to the Project Officer of the National Highway on April 20 to rectify the road technical problem, saying that speed breakers, solar blinker lights, reflectors, High masks should be installed. But even on the letter of the MLA, it is not visible that the National Highway officials have taken any small or concrete steps till now to prevent accidents on the National Highway.
