Thane: A 58-year-old doctor from Bhiwandi, who had saved countless lives during his career, lost his own life in a tragic road accident after his two-wheeler skidded on a pothole-ridden road uneven road (gap between road and paver block), and was crushed under the rear wheel of a truck.
The deceased has been identified as Dr. Naseem Ansari, a resident of Gulzar Nagar, Bhiwandi, where he lived with his wife and other family members.
Accident Near Siraj Hospital Sparks Protests
The incident occurred on Friday night at 12:30 AM at Vanjar Patti Naka, near Siraj Hospital, when Dr. Ansari was returning home on his Activa scooter after having dinner at a dhaba with friends and relatives.
According to police, Dr. Ansari lost control of his scooter due to a pothole, fell on the road, and came under the rear wheel of a truck, resulting in his death on the spot. The local rushed to the spot and he was immediately taken to Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital In Bhiwandi for further medical procedure.
Following the accident, angry residents took to the streets and protested the poor condition of roads in Bhiwandi. The protest lasted for around one hours before Nizampura police arrived at the scene and managed to disperse the crowd.
Civic Negligence Alleged by Residents
Local residents alleged that due to ongoing repair work on the APJ Abdul Kalam Bridge, all four access points were blocked by the Bhiwandi-Nizampura City Municipal Corporation. As a result, heavy vehicles were diverted through city roads, worsening the traffic and endangering commuters.
Residents claimed that movement of heavy vehicles should have been restricted during the repair work. They also pointed out that heavy vehicles are, by rule, prohibited from entering the city.
An eyewitness said the scooter was moving at around 20–30 km/h and both the truck and the scooter were going slowly. The accident was caused due to a gap between the paver blocks and the RCC concrete road, which led Dr. Ansari to fall on his right side and come under the dumper’s rear wheel.
PRO Shrikant Pardeshi from BNCMC said, "The bridge's surfaces (road) repair work was not possible during the day and therefore it was carried out at night."
CCTV footage of the accident has since surfaced on social media, further fueling public anger.
Truck Driver Arrested, Police Investigation On
Senior Police Inspector Vishwas Dagale of Nizampura Police Station said, “We have arrested the truck driver, Mohammad Bilal Mohammed Aslam, who was headed toward Kalyan Road from Vanjar Patti Naka.”
Dagale confirmed that the dumper did not hit Dr. Ansari directly, but due to the uneven road (gap between road and paver block), his scooter skidded, causing him to fall under the rear wheel. An investigation is currently underway.
Political Leaders Demand Accountability
Local MLA Rais Shaikh from Bhiwandi East held the Bhiwandi-Nizampura City Municipal Corporation responsible for the incident. He demanded that an FIR be registered against responsible civic officials, and that they be jailed to understand the consequences of civic negligence. “We will stage a massive agitation if the pothole problem is not resolved,” he warned.
Shaikh also stated that he has submitted a memorandum to the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister, demanding ₹25 lakh compensation for the family of Dr. Naseem Ansari.
He further demanded the formation of an engineering task force under the leadership of a senior engineer to address the pothole crisis in Bhiwandi and prevent future accidents.
“Thousands of potholes—some as large as 15 feet long, wide, and 1 foot deep—exist on the Bhiwandi-Wada Highway, and the situation is similar on other roads across the city,” Shaikh added.
Dr. Noor Ansari from Siraj Hospital, Bhiwandi, said, “Even after the accident, the pothole responsible for the incident was not filled by the Bhiwandi Corporation. Our hospital staff had to fill it with small stones.” He criticized the authorities, saying, “Petitions are filed for pigeons and dogs, but it seems human life holds no value here.”
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Second Fatal Pothole Accident in a Month
This is the second fatal pothole-related accident in Bhiwandi within a month. On July 30, over 200 villagers from the Bhiwandi-Wada Road blocked the highway for nearly an hour after a 17-year-old boy died during treatment following a motorcycle accident caused by a pothole.
