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India Today
5 days ago
- Politics
- India Today
New bridge in Maharashtra becomes skidding zone, closed within hours of opening
The Palava Bridge, located on the Kalyan-Shil Road, was opened to the public on July 4 in a low-profile event attended by MLA Rajesh More and select Shiv Sena (Shinde faction) bridge, which was built at a cost of approximately 40 crore, was shut down within two hours of its inauguration due to safety concerns, after multiple minor accidents were later reopened the bridge after applying fine gravel to improve road grip, but by then, opposition parties including the Thackeray-led Shiv Sena and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) had already taken the ruling faction to task. Just a few days after the inauguration, the flyover, once promoted as a key solution to traffic congestion, is drawing sharp criticism from opposition and commuters, who now refer to it as a 'skidding zone' due to loose gravel, muddy patches, cement spills and unevenly laid newly inaugurated bridge has now become the epicentre of a political storm, with opposition parties lashing out at the ruling Shiv Sena (Shinde faction) over allegations of substandard construction and hasty inauguration.A video posted by former MNS MLA Pramod Ratan Patil, showing potholes and gravel washed away by rain, quickly went viral. Patil criticised the quality of the construction and questioned the decision to open an allegedly incomplete bridge.# ! # # #MMRDA @MMRDAOfficial Raju Patil ( () ) (@rajupatilmanase) July 4, 2025'The construction work of the Palava Bridge has been of extremely poor quality, and regarding this, I have demanded an inspection of the bridge's quality,' he said in his social media post. 'What's this nonsense, Gandabhai?'In response, the Shinde faction released its own video showing vehicles moving on the bridge and claimed it was in good Rajesh More defended the work and said, 'This bridge was built due to the efforts of MP Dr. Shrikant Shinde to relieve traffic on the Kalyan-Shil Road. We are opening it for vehicular movement and expect citizens to be happy. We want to tell the opposition, we don't just criticise via tweets, we inspect work on the ground and show the results.''The road had been temporarily shut due to slippery asphalt, but we immediately spread fine gravel. Opposition released a video showing a pothole, but even today after inspection, the road is perfectly fine and open to traffic. It seems like the opposition is just seeing imaginary potholes,' he Pundlik Mhatre, leader of the Thackeray faction, demanded that criminal cases be filed against the officials and contractors involved. He also launched a sharp worded attack on X.'Several people were injured after falling on this bridge which was inaugurated on July 4. The road has deteriorated badly. I've submitted a memorandum to DCP Atul Zhende and demanded legal action against those who inaugurated the incomplete bridge and the contractors responsible for substandard work,' Mhatre said while talking to the media in adding fuel to the fire, Pramod Ratan Patil also targeted Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde for choosing to travel by helicopter from Thane to Kalyan, a distance of just 20 kilometers, during his Ashadhi Ekadashi visit."For a journey of just 20 kilometers, was a helicopter necessary? Had he used this bridge, he would have witnessed its poor condition firsthand. Once upon a time, he came to the ground for his loved ones' work, now it's time to come down and see the public's problems too," Patil Palava Bridge has been under construction for eight years, causing severe traffic issues for daily commuters on Kalyan-Shil Road. The opposition has accused the government of inaugurating the bridge in a rush without ensuring it was fully completed and safe.- Ends IN THIS STORY#Maharashtra
Time of India
6 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Opens after 7-year wait: Maharashtra's Palava flyover faces controversy over road quality; MSRDC denies potholes
THANE: After photos and videos of potholes and uneven roads on the Palava flyover, inaugurated five days ago in Dombivli, went viral, questions were raised about the construction quality of the flyover. However, on Wednesday, MSRDC, which built this flyover, denied the existence of any potholes on it. MSRDC officials admitted that while constructing the flyover, the contractor put excess bitumen in some places. As a result, they had to apply grit powder, which spread due to heavy rains, making it look like potholes. MSRDC officials stated that almost all the spread grit powder has been removed by the contractor in the last two days, and now the road is almost clear. However, opposition leaders blamed the contractor for not doing proper quality work, which MSRDC is now trying to hide by giving different technical reasons. It may be recalled that this 562-metre, two-lane section of the Palava flyover, out of a planned four lanes, is located on Kalyan Sheel Road. It connects cities like Kalyan Dombivli, Ulhasnagar, and Ambarnath to Navi Mumbai, where heavy traffic is common. The flyover was completed recently after a wait of almost seven years at a project cost of Rs 72 crore. If sources are to be believed, some work was still left after the construction of this flyover. However, seeing the opposition party blaming the ruling party for the delay in building this flyover, Shiv Sena MLA Rajesh More of the ruling party suddenly inaugurated it on the morning of 4 July without any noise. Within a short time of the inauguration, two motorcycles slipped and fell due to the excess bitumen on the road. Following this, MSRDC closed the flyover for some time. During this period, MSRDC tried to settle the excess bitumen by applying grit powder through the contractor to prevent vehicles from slipping. MSRDC sources said that after applying the bitumen powder, the road was reopened. However, since there was no sunshine and continuous rain, the grit powder came out of the bitumen and spread, making it look like potholes on the road, which were not potholes but spread grit. Dipesh Mhatre, Kalyan district chief of Shiv Sena (UBT), said the contractor was negligent in building this road. The road layer was required to be built with asphalt mastic as per the tender, but the contractor applied bitumen on top to simulate asphalt mastic work, which was in excess quantity, leading to accidents on the road. Mhatre said that lies are being told now to hide mistakes on the newly built flyover. However, former MLA of MNS, Pramod (Raju) Patil, has raised questions about the quality of this flyover and has demanded that the quality test of the newly built flyover be conducted by VJTI. On the other hand, amid the controversy over the flyover, its construction has provided relief to thousands of common people, especially from Palava township. Ojal Sahu, who travels on this road daily, said that earlier, due to the absence of this flyover, he faced traffic for 20 to 25 minutes at Palava Junction in the evening, which now takes hardly two minutes. Sahu demanded that the govt now needs to focus on controlling the excess traffic at Katai Junction because the entire traffic of Palava Junction has now shifted to Katai Junction.
Hindustan Times
7 days ago
- Hindustan Times
Palava flyover a skidding zone, four days after its inauguration
THANE: The Katai-Nilje flyover, commonly known as Palava flyover, was inaugurated on July 4 at the hands of Shiv Sena MLA Rajesh More, from Dombivli. On the same day, two bikers skidded on its surface and suffered minor injuries. Less than a week after its inauguration, the flyover which was positioned as a crucial link to ease traffic congestion between Shilphata and Kalyan, is being ridiculed by commuters as a 'skidding zone', riddled with loose gravel, muddy patches, cement spills and poorly laid tar. The Palava flyover, meant to ease traffic, has turned out to be a danger zone leaving commuters outraged and demanding accountability from authorities. Photo by Pramod Tambe/HT Photo The 562-meter flyover was built at a cost of ₹250 crore; and four days since it was opened to public, 450 meters of the stretch has shown up its poor shape, evidenced by Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation's (MSRDC) contractors seen on-site through the day busy patching up the hazardous sections. Ashwini Pawar, an office assistant, who commutes from Shilphata to Kalyan, said, 'We were excited to finally be able to use the flyover thinking it would save time. However, what was envisioned as a symbol of infrastructural progress has now become a glaring example of poor planning, delayed execution and administrative negligence.' Having navigated the deep grooves on the stretch, Amit Yadav, who works in a bank, and travels from Airoli to Badlapur daily, said, 'Even someone with cataract can spot the flaws, to which authorities seemed to have turned a blind eye. I have to ride my bike very slowly over the loose granules and to lessen the constant jerks.' Another frequent traveller, Vaishnav Vinod, observed, 'The flyover was supposed to ease our travel but it looks like a trial track. It's shocking that a newly opened bridge is in such poor condition. If this is the quality after years of delay, what were authorities even working on?' The construction of the flyover began in December 2018. At the time, the plan was to build two parallel flyovers – one from Shilphata (Desai Naka) to Kalyan (Katai Naka), and the other in the reverse direction. However, work was halted in 2020 due to the proposed Dedicated Freight Corridor (DFC) of Indian Railways. The railways wished to widen the corridor with two extra lines dedicated for freight trains and as the pillars of the flyover were designed to be constructed on these spaces, it requested MSRDC to revise it to accommodate the corridor. The plan was revised in 2020, and following approvals from all stakeholders, construction resumed. The flyover, supported by 45 foundations or pillars, stretches from Desai Creek to Katai toll naka, and is situated on the vital Kalyan-Shilphata corridor, which connects Kalyan-Dombivli to Thane and Navi Mumbai—an area infamous for chronic traffic congestion. When work began, MP Shrikant Shinde had stated the new flyover will help reduce travel time from Katai naka to Navi Mumbai from 45 minutes to just 10 minutes. While he blamed 'technical issues' for the delays, he assured the project would be completed by February 2024. Shinde's empty promise led to protests and public anger. Former Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) MLA from Dombivli Raju Patil had raised the matter of the incomplete flyover twice in the legislative assembly, and also wrote to MSRDC questioning the delay over clearance of encroachments on the route and completion of the reverse side of the flyover. At the time, all he could elicit from authorities was 'the project will be completed soon'. Present MLA More visited the site earlier this year and announced that the deadline of May 31 would be met, which also turned out to be a false claim. The delay led to joint protests by MNS and the Shiv Sena (UBT) who gathered near the flyover questioning the seven-year wait. He was unavailable for comment on the issue on Tuesday. After its inauguration on Friday, Patil returned to the site after reports of multiple two-wheelers skidding surfaced. 'The flyover is completely in bad shape. We spoke to the workers and found that there is no proper mastic asphalt layer, leaving the surface full of granules and uneven patches. The surface coat has vanished, exposing iron rods within,' said Patil, adding that he has demanded a structural audit of the flyover. 'Strict action must be taken against authorities responsible for such state of affairs. The bridge, approved and sanctioned seven years ago, has seen its budget balloon at every MSRDC meeting. Now that the flyover is under scrutiny, officials are avoiding disclosure of the spends,' said Patil. Meanwhile, putting up a defense of its work, MSRDC blamed the flaw on the oil from asphalt. An MSRDC official, who did not wish to be named, said, 'The newly laid asphalt had become slippery in some locations. Hence, as a precautionary measure grit was spread on the surface. After that no slippery incidence was observed.' He added, pictures of the rough surface being shared on social media are not that 'of potholes but accumulation of grit which was removed later'. The state of the newly-opened flyover led retired government officer Raju Gokhale to say, 'It takes real talent to spend crores and still deliver a bridge that feels like a disaster zone from day one. It's not just poor execution but an insult on efforts towards public safety.
