Meghnagar (Madhya Pradesh): For the past few months, stone-pelting has been happening increasingly on the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway. This leaves drivers as well as commuters feeling vulnerable and anxious these days. The lack of security measures has not only put the lives of drivers and commuters at risk but has also raised concerns about the effectiveness of toll tax collection by the National Highway Authority (NHA).
This is all happening after the NHA collected a huge toll tax from the commuters, but security is not being provided to the people passing through this expressway. Immediate action must be taken to ensure the safety of commuters and restore their confidence in using this expressway.
In a fresh incident reported late Wednesday, some unidentified miscreants pelted stones on the vehicle of Manish Baghel, former vice-president of Thandla municipal council, who was passing from Timerwani near Thandla via this route.
FP Photo
Besides this, stones were also pelted on vehicles, including GJ 20 AQ 1137, MH 05 AJ 3467, GJ 20 AQ 2833, and many other vehicles passing through this route. The incident caused damage to the vehicles, resulting in broken windshields and dented exteriors.
Due to the sudden stone pelting, fear prevailed among the drivers, who drove their vehicles at uncontrolled speed and brought them to the toll booth anticipating they could get any help from there.
The drivers at the toll booth informed the responsible toll personnel about the incident. The toll booth attendants, however, were caught off guard by the chaotic situation and were unable to provide immediate assistance.
As tensions escalated, some drivers decided to take matters into their own hands and called the authorities for help.
Those who were injured in this stone-pelting incidents were sent for treatment with the help of ambulance. People dialed 100 and Thandla police were also informed about the incident, but the police had not reached the toll booth.
As per the drivers and commuters, the stone pelting incidents took place between 10 and 12 kilometres east of the toll booth.
The driver of Mumbai-bound car MH 05 AJ 3467 was crying at the toll as the front portion of his vehicle was badly damaged. He was not able to travel further in the cold night. The drivers did not get any help on the spot.
Meanwhile, attempts to contact Delhi-Mumbai Expressway project director Ravindra Gupta whose office is in Ratlam, failed after repeated attempts as he did not pick up the phone. Sub-divisional officer (police) Ravindra Rathi who is completely unaware of the incidents said that he was out of town currently.
On the other hand, Thandla police station in-charge Rajkumar Kunsariya did not respond, while sub-inspector Heeralal Malivada said that no formal complaint they received so far or no one from the toll booth informed them about any such incident.
