An extraordinary helicopter rescue of a leading industrialist has drawn national attention to the massive traffic crisis on the Mumbai Pune Expressway, where thousands of commuters have been stranded for over 30 hours following a gas tanker accident near the Adoshi tunnel.
Sudhir Mehta, chairman of Pinnacle Industries Limited, was airlifted to Pune after being stuck in traffic for nearly eight hours, highlighting the severity of the disruption on one of India’s most critical road corridors.
Eight hours in gridlock before air rescue
Mehta was travelling along the expressway when a flammable gas tanker overturned on Tuesday, February 3, forcing authorities to halt traffic for safety reasons. What began as a precautionary stoppage soon escalated into a massive gridlock, with vehicles stretching for kilometres in both directions.
After hours of immobility and limited updates, Mehta was eventually rescued by helicopter. Sharing his ordeal on X, formerly Twitter, he described the situation as alarming and unsustainable for a major economic artery.
“Lacs of people are stuck on the Mumbai Pune expressway for the last 18 hours for one gas tanker,” Mehta wrote, calling for urgent changes in emergency management.
Call for emergency exits and helipads
Following his rescue, Mehta urged the government to plan dedicated exit points along the expressway that could be opened during emergencies, allowing vehicles to turn back instead of remaining trapped for hours.
He also strongly advocated for the installation of helipads near expressways, pointing out that they require less than one acre of land and cost under Rs 10 lacs. According to him, such infrastructure could save lives by enabling quick evacuation and emergency medical access.
Thanking Union Minister Nitin Gadkari for assistance, Mehta said helipads should be mandatory along high traffic highways.
Chaos on the ground continues
While the industrialist’s airlift offered a dramatic escape, thousands of ordinary commuters continued to endure harsh conditions inside their vehicles, many without food, water or sanitation facilities. Wrong side driving, frustration and exhaustion added to the danger, as described by Mehta in another post calling the highway a “free for all”.
Traffic congestion persisted until Thursday morning, further aggravated by a cement mixer breakdown between Talegaon and Marauli on the Mumbai bound carriageway.
Questions over preparedness
The incident has triggered sharp criticism of highway disaster preparedness and response systems. As normalcy slowly returns, commuters and experts alike are demanding stronger safety planning to ensure that a single accident does not paralyse the region again.
