Thane: Reinforcement cage falls on moving car at Kopri Bridge; MMRDA imposes Rs 2 crore fine

A reinforcement cage at an underconstruction pier of the Anand NagarndashSaket Elevated Road project toppled onto a moving car on Kopri Bridge in Thane damaging its front windshield No injuries were reported in the incident according to the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority MMRDAThe Regional Disaster Management Cell RDMC said that a metal mould weighing around 12 tonnes used for constructing a flyover pillar tilted onto a road in Thane West on Saturday afternoon damaging a passing car No injuries were reportedThe incident occurred at around 150 pm near Tulja Bhavani Temple in Bhaskar Colony along the Eastern Express Highway during construction work on the MMRDArsquos Anand NagarSaket elevated road projectPolice traffic officials disaster management personnel and civic staff reached the site A crane was deployed to remove the tilted metal structure from the roadMMRDA imposes Rs 2 crore penalty on contractorMMRDA said it was treating the incident with utmost seriousness and would not tolerate lapses in construction safety The authority has imposed a penalty of Rs 2 crore on the contractor executing the projectldquoThe damaged vehicle has been removed and the toppled reinforcement cage is being safely cleared with the assistance of a cranerdquo MMRDA said in a statementInvestigation ordered into safety lapsesMMRDA has ordered a detailed investigation to determine the cause of the incident and identify any safety lapses at the construction site The authority said necessary corrective measures would be enforced to prevent similar incidents in the futureldquoSuch incidents are unacceptable and any lapse in construction safety will not be toleratedrdquo the authority saidMMRDA reiterated that public safety remained its highest priority and assured that strict accountability would be enforced at every project siteThree killed three injured as tempo plunges into gorge in NandedIn a separate incident three persons were killed and three others sustained injuries after a tempo they were travelling in plunged nearly 100 feet into a gorge on a ghat road in Maharashtras Nanded district police said on Saturday reported PTIThe accident occurred when the vehicle carrying pilgrims from Yavatmal was negotiating a sharp bend on Keroli Ghat in Mahur tehsil around 5 am on Friday an official saidThe victims who worked at a furniture shop were returning to Yavatmal after visiting a temple at Mahur for the ongoing Navratri festival reported PTIAccording to the police the tempo was descending the ghat and a vehicle approaching from the opposite direction allegedly came at high speed on the wrong side of the road Its powerful headlights reportedly blinded the tempo driver who attempted to steer away to avoid a collision reported PTIHowever the absence of a sturdy protective wall or crash barrier at the bend caused the driver to lose control and the tempo plunged into the deep gorgeBabarao Dnyanoba Tekam 60 Rahul Sudhakarrao Thakre 25 and Pritam Ramrao Pradhan 38 who were seated in the open cargo section at the rear were thrown out as the tempo tumbled down the slope reported PTIThakre and Pradhan died on the spot while the third man succumbed during treatment the official saidThe driver Pratik Arvind Adkine 26 Datta Manohar Meshram 35 and Yashwant Arvind Patil 25 who were seated in the cabin sustained minor injuries and their condition is stable the official said reported PTIHe said that the tempo and the victims were extricated with the help of ropes and a craneWith inputs from PTI