Mumbai rains: Waterlogging, potholes throw life out of gear on Mumbai-Ahmedabad highway

The incessant rainfall caught the VasaiVirar City Municipal Corporation VVCMC off guard as all arterial roads in the area under its jurisdiction were heavily waterlogged on Wednesday throwing local residentsrsquo lives out of gear A huge traffic jam was also noticed on the MumbaiAhmedabad highway due to waterlogging apart from potholeridden stretchesThe traffic snarl had left road users fuming after the first spell of rain this monsoon which caused the roads near Sasunavghar on the highway to become heavily waterloggedldquoThis is another location near Welcome Dhaba where the water is 25 feet high This new location is hardly 5 km from Selfie Dhaba where the roads were waterlogged due to the first spell of rainrdquo said Traffic Inspector Sagar Ingole of Mira Bhayandar VasaiVirar MBVV policeCops in waisthigh waterWaisthigh in water police officers had to risk their lives to regulate traffic ldquoThe roads are jammed from Kashimira to Welcome Dhaba on both sidesrdquo Ingole saidMilk suppliers who travel every day on the highway from their tabelas dairies in Vasai to Borivli told midday that the traffic was moving at an extremely slow pace ldquoDrivers are scared to drive on the waterlogged stretch which is riddled with potholesrdquo said Mehndi Ali the owner of Indian Dairy in VasaildquoEarlier we would take hardly an hour to reach Mumbai but today it took us four hours because the highway is pathetically waterlogged and the stretch is riddled with potholesrdquo said Mehndi AliThe secretary of Milk Producer Welfare of Association Ahmed Ali said ldquoAs we canrsquot preserve milk for a long duration it spoils fast If milk trucks are caught in traffic we will incur a huge loss We have already suffered financially because of a traffic snarl on the highway The authorities concerned must look into this and resolve the issuerdquoCops try in vain to control traffic on the potholeridden stretchThe milk tankers were taking Bhiwandi route to reach Mumbai from Vasai said Ahmed AliMeanwhile the Mehndi Ali told midday that there are over 8000 buffaloes in 46 tabelas in Kaman village of Vasai ldquoIf the milk is not supplied in Mumbai on time many children elderly people hotels restaurants and others will have to face the cascading effect of traffic jams on the MumbaiAhmedabad highwayrdquo he saidMehndi Ali added ldquoThe roads near Chinchoti Maljipada and Sasunavghar are riddled with potholes and it is dangerous to drive loaded trucks on such stretches if they are heavily waterloggedrdquoldquoThe traffic snarl is terrible between Chinchoti and Fountain Hotel junction on the southbound stretch And on the northbound stretch the vehicles are stuck between the Delhi Darbar Hotel in Kashimira and Maljipada It is a vast stretch of not less than 12 to 15 kmrdquo he saidA milk truck driver Bhadruddin Qureshi 48 said ldquoI have to travel from Chinchoti to Borivli to deliver milk daily Under normal circumstances I take 45 minutes to an hour to reach my destination But since the monsoon began I need three to four hours to reach the same spot There are potholes near Maljipada Sasunavghar and Kinara DhabardquoHe added that if the milk is not delivered on time it spoils ldquoSome 15 days ago this happened I felt bad as I couldnrsquot do anythingrdquo he saidQureshi slammed the authorities saying ldquoThe policemen donrsquot help us and we are not allowed to drive from the right side They impose fines The traffic doesnrsquot moverdquoA truck driver told midday ldquoTraffic near Maljipada is inevitable I travel to Delhi every day It usually takes 22 hours but now I take 48 hours to reach there The roads are in a pathetic condition There are potholes and waterlogging is seen The police are of no help to us They try to impose fines for silly reasonsrdquoDev Yadav 40 a milk van driver said ldquoToday I travelled from Kandivli to Chinchoti and it took three hours to complete my journey Maljipada has a lot of potholes I doubt it has a road Bad roads and waterlogging are an open invitation for accidents I have to be vigilant and dodge craters Driving on such roads is a taskrdquoAmbulances held upYadav claimed that even ambulances were being held up on the stretch ldquoThe situation is such that even ambulances have to wait People and authorities cooperate so that the ambulance can move but it is timeconsuming and could be dangerousrdquo he addedAll of the drivers said they were suffering from back pain because of the excessive amount of time spent behind the wheel in trafficThe owners of hotels resorts and dhabas that were partially razed recently in an antiencroachment drive told midday that the National Highways Authority of India NHAI as well as VVCMC must create a proper drainage system to prevent waterlogging on the highwayldquoWhy is there waterlogging despite the authorities cracking down on dhabas along the highway The officials say the high water level is responsible for waterlogging but the fact is the VVCMC did not clean nullahs which always get choked during the monsoon Also the entire stretch on the highway lacks a proper drainage systemrdquo said a hotel ownerOfficialSpeakMeanwhile Sumit Kumar manager technical NHAI told midday ldquoWe are trying to fix the potholes as soon as possible A permanent solution will be possible only if there is a dry period during which we can fill the potholes It is true that the highway is waterlogged but it was mainly due to sea water and torrential rainrdquoHe added ldquoWe are in constant touch with the traffic police and have requested that vehicles coming from Surat to Mumbai be allowed to cross the creek on one lane on the newly opened Versova bridge because a few potholes have developed on the southern side of the bridge on the creekrdquoThe collector of Palghar district has issued a red alert as heavy to very heavy rainfall is expected in the area ldquoThe red alert has been issued for the duration between July 18 to 22 The authorities should be ready in case of floodingrdquo read the collectorrsquos letter issued to VVCMC chief Anil Pawar on July 18VasaiVirar roads floodedAvinash Koshti the tehsildar of Vasai taluka told midday that all arterial roads in VasaiVirar and Nalasopara were heavily waterloggedOn an average 153 mm of rainfall was recorded in Vasai taluka on the morning of July 19 All the arterial roads are heavily waterlogged in VasaiVirar and Nalasopara areas of Palghar district Many residents preferred to stay at homeA few officegoers had to put up with torrential rainfall while travelling to railway stations to reach their workplaces in Mumbai while many preferred to stay indoors and work from homeldquoIncessant rainfall has taken a toll in VasaiVirar where most arterial roads are heavily waterlogged I woke up early in the morning to catch the train to Mumbai but it had been raining nonstop I could not go out to work and stayed at homerdquo said Vasai resident Girish IyerWhen contacted the VVCMC chief Anil Pawar claimed to be busy video conferencing all day153mmRainfall received in Vasai taluka on Wed morning