Locals fear night-time tragedies as area has been without streetlights for five months
Broken and non-functional streetlights along Gorai beach have left the area in complete darkness. Pics/By Special Arrangement
Gorai beach, known for its calm and natural beauty, has been shrouded in darkness every evening for the past five months. Despite repeated complaints, residents say the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has failed to restore streetlights, leaving the area unsafe.
mid-day had reported the issue on August 4, when the BMC promised to resolve it within two weeks. Over a month later, no progress has been made. Concerns escalated after a minivan got stuck in wet sand during high tide on the afternoon of September 8. Locals fear the same could happen at night, with potentially deadly consequences for unsuspecting visitors.
“Those who live here know the dangers of venturing onto the beach at night without lights, but visitors don’t. Someone seeking a thrill in the dark could end up stuck in rising waves, with the risk of being swept into the sea,” said Rossi D’Sousa, member of the Gorai Gaothan Panchayat and local activist. D’Sousa added that lifeguards stationed at the beach would also be helpless without visibility in a crisis.
Royston Godinho, deputy sarpanch of the Gorai Gaothan Panchayat, said the beach is being neglected. “If Gorai attracted large crowds like other beaches, we don’t think the lights would have been delayed this long. This time, when the van got stuck during the day, locals rushed to help. At night, nobody would even see the danger, let alone help.”
When contacted about the delay, Sandhya Nandedkar, assistant commissioner of BMC’s R Central ward, told mid-day, “We have asked the power company to install new lights at the beach, and they have assured us it will happen soon.”
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