The pitch dark stretch of Vashi bridge. Pic/ Sneha Kharabe

The monsoon is just days away, yet the 10-km stretch on the Sion-Panvel highway from Vashi bridge to Kharghar continues to remain in pitch darkness. The streetlights here have not been working for a month now and residents allege that the authorities have been ignoring requests to look into the matter. When mid-day took a ride along the stretch, we found lights only in two or three spots, leaving the rest of the potholed stretch in darkness. The Sion-Panvel highway is a six-lane road constructed just a few years ago.