'Why step out early': NHAI's shocking remark on 40-hour Madhya Pradesh jam that killed 3

Hindustan Times

9 hours ago

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) was pulled up for faulty roadwork after three people died in Madhya Pradesh's Indore due to a 40-hour traffic jam. NHAI has attributed the delay to a 10-day crusher unit strike, however, the court noted it had requested for three to four months to complete the road work. (Representational)(Sunil Ghosh / Hindustan Times)
However, the NHAI's answer in the Madhya Pradesh high court appeared to be blaming the public instead.
After the Madhya Pradesh high court pulled up the court over the 40-hour traffic jam on the Indore–Dewas section of the Agra–Mumbai National Highway, the highway body, rather than take responsibility for the damage, responded with - "Why do people even leave home so early without any work?"
As per an NDTV report, this response came from the legal counsel of NHAI during the hearing of a PIL case in the MP high court.
After the death of three people due to the traffic jam, a notice was issued to the Central government and NHAI. The notice was issued by Justices Vivek Rusia and Binod Kumar Dwivedi of the HC's Indore bench.
The notice was also issued to the administration and police of Indore. All parties have been given time till July 7 to respond to the legal notice. 40 hours and 3 deaths: NHAI pulled up over incomplete roads
While issuing the fresh notice against NHAI, the high court noted that it had called on the highways body to complete the construction of a diversion road in September 2024, setting a deadline for four weeks. In June 2025, the road remains unfinished.
NHAI has attributed the delay to a 10-day crusher unit strike, however, the court noted it had requested for three to four months to complete the road work.
Due to the unfinished work, drivers on the highway were caught in a 40 hour traffic jam, which resulted in the death of three people. The deceased have been identified as Kamal Panchal (62) from Indore, Balram Patel (55) from Shujalpur and Sandeep Patel (32) from Gari Pipalya village.
As per reports, Kalam Panchal died of a heart attack after suffocating in the heat during the traffic jam. Furthermore, as per Balram Pate's nephew, the family was on the road in order to save their uncle's life, who died later in the traffic jam.