The High Court of Bombay has directed the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) & the public works department (PWD) of the State Govt to submit a report on the Mumbai-Goa Highway widening project after a PIL was filed alleging that the delay in completing the project was resulting in loss of lives due to accidents, which were occurring due to improper barricading of work areas. The High Court also directed the authorities to ensure filling up of potholes that had developed due to monsoon to ensure safety of vehicular traffic.

The division bench of chief justice Dipankar Datta & justice Girish Kulkarni, while hearing the Public Interest Litigation filed by Lawyer Owais Pechkar, a resident of Chiplun in Konkan, was informed that he was a regular commuter on the Mumbai-Goa Highway & sought directions to the authorities to resolve the delay in the road-widening project as well as other issues faced by daily commuters of NH-66 who were at a risk of accidents due to potholes.

Referring to an earlier PIL filed by him in 2018, Pechkar submitted that though the High Court had directed NHAI & state to ensure that the highway was rid of potholes, nothing had been done so far, hence he was forced to file another PIL highlighting the same issues & others.

In its 2018 order, the High Court had suggested that the state rope in experts to suggest technologies to address the pothole problem over a longer period of time, but, Pechkar said, nothing had been done in that regard.

After hearing the submissions, the bench concurred & asked NHAI & PWD to look into the issues including potholes as monsoon is underway & safety measures needed to be taken to avoid accidents & save lives. The Court also said that it was the responsibility of the authorities to place warning signages & barricades where road-widening work was going on. It also sought a progress report of the highway widening work & asked the authorities to inform by when it would be completed.

Advocate General Ashutosh Kumbhakoni for the state assured the Court that the Court’s observations would be conveyed to the officers concerned & who would respond in the next hearing.

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