MUMBAI: A 23-year-old photographer had a narrow escape on Friday evening after a steel reinforcement bar from the under-construction Sewri-Worli Elevated Connector Road project fell on his head at Parel, injuring him.
The accident, part of a troubling series that includes fatalities, has once again put the spotlight on the lack of accountability among state agencies and the contractors executing Mumbai’s marquee infrastructure projects.
The Sewri-Worli Elevated Connector is being built by the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), which has appointed J Kumar Infraprojects Ltd as the contractor.
Friday’s accident, which injured Ganesh Budhale, a commercial photographer, comes on the heels of a fatal lapse at a Metro 4 site in Mulund, where a section of an unfastened parapet wall fell to the road below, crushing an autorickshaw and killing one of its occupants.
In the incident on Friday, an 8-mm steel rebar at a worksite at Pillar No 44 near Wadia Maternity Hospital plunged 45 feet. The rod struck a barricade, reducing the impact, and then hit Budhale’s head.
“Thankfully, it struck the side of my head. I dread to think what might have happened if it had fallen on the centre of my head,” said Budhale, a resident of Suryanagar, Vikhroli, while recovering in a private hospital in Parel.
Bhoiwada police have registered a case against the in-charge site engineer with J Kumar Infraprojects under Section 125 (endangering life or personal safety) and Section 289 (negligent conduct with respect to machinery) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023.
“The contract for the Sewri-Worli Elevated Connector has been given to J Kumar Infrastructure. The rod slipped from the hands of a worker. But there was no safety net, so the rod fell to the street below and on Budhale’s head. We have registered an offence against the in-charge engineer, Piraji Kamble,” said a police officer with the Bhoiwada police.
Sunil Chavhan, a first-aider with J Kumar Infraprojects claimed the rod had fallen between gaps in protective sheets at the site. However, when HT visited the site, protective sheets were not visible. “Work has halted for now. We have taken preventive action and now protective sheets are being put up,” claimed Chavhan.
MMRDA has issued a show-cause notice to both the project management consultant (PMC), M/s STUP, and the contractor, J Kumar Projects Ltd. “Stern action will be taken against those found responsible for the lapse,” according to MMRDA.
Acknowledging the accident, MMRDA said, “The rebar inadvertently fell, bounced on the barricade and caused injury to a passerby, during ongoing pier reinforcement work being executed by the project contractor. The authority will bear the entire treatment cost.” The agency said a review of site safety practices and compliance mechanisms has been initiated.
For Budhale, however, the assurances offer little comfort after his narrow escape. Echoing what many Mumbaiites have said before, the young photographer said state agencies have utter disregard for public safety.
“I was forced to walk on the road since the footpath was unusable due to construction work on the elevated corridor. With even that proving unsafe, where are we to walk? In Mumbai, the streets are riddled with potholes and there’s danger from above,” he said.
Vishal Kadam, a friend of Budhale, waiting for him to recover in hospital, said, “He was bleeding profusely but conscious when he called me from the accident site. He sent me the live location and I rushed to the spot.”
Kadam first took Budhale to KEM Hospital, Parel, where basic first aid was administered. He was thereafter shifted to a private facility, where he received six stitches to the left frontal region of his head, said Kadam.
Attempts to reach J Kumar Infraprojects yielded no response.
With multiple ongoing infrastructure projects across the city, leader of the opposition in the BMC, Kishori Pednekar, told HT, “There seems to be no control or supervision on the works being undertaken by various agencies. There is a complete disregard for safety norms in projects, which are thus endangering the lives of citizens.”