A month on, Salt Lake accident spot has only 2 speed breakers
Times of India | 12 December 2024
1234 Kolkata: A month has passed since a class-II student died when his mother, taking him home on a scooter, lost control while negotiating an uneven stretch in Salt Lake. But almost nothing has changed on the ground. Despite assurances from civic and police authorities regarding comprehensive road repairs and safety measures, the only visible changes are two speed bumps installed near the accident site. The dangerous road conditions and other hazardous factors that contributed to the accident remain unaddressed.
On Nov 12, the 11-year-old boy was returning home from school on a scooter with his mother and cousin. All three were flung on to the road while the mother was trying to negotiate an uneven stretch. The boy died after sustaining fatal injuries when his head bumped against one of two racing buses passing through Salt Lake gate near Hudco crossing.
CM Mamata Banerjee was quick to react to the accident and asked cops to act tough on racing bus drivers, both of whom were arrested and booked with culpable homicide not amounting to murder. Prodded by the CM's reaction, a team from Bidhannagar traffic guard and engineers of Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation (BMC) conducted an examination of the accident spot and promised a slew of measures, including immediate repair of roads, levelling the raised metal covers of telecom cables that the woman was trying to negotiate, deploying more policemen throughout the day, and levelling the saucer drains to the road surface.
However, on a visit to the site on Wednesday, TOI found none of the promises had been kept. In fact, to make things worse, the potholes have widened, and encroachment in the form of dumped sand on a side of the road has made driving along the stretch more accident-prone. School children were also found riding on the stretch with their parents, still without helmets.
"The area is as accident-prone as it was a month ago. We thought things would change after the accident but all the multi-agency visits and initial deployment of cops have led to nothing. They just installed two humps on the two flanks a day after the accident," said Satyaki Banerjee, a Salt Lake resident who drives along the stretch every day.
Biswanath Karmakar, who runs a shop next to the spot, said, "For a few days after the accident, a guard rail was placed in front of the raised metal cover that led to the accident. We thought they would repair it, but nothing of that sort happened. In fact, after a few days, they shifted the guard rail to a side, and cars still ply on the dangerous part. A similar accident may happen any time."
Cops said they maintain heavy deployment in the area, especially during school dispersal, and said awareness drives to make kids wear helmets are also undertaken. A BMC executive engineer admitted nothing has been done on the accident stretch but said a tender was issued for repair works that has been approved. "A slew of repair works is on," said the officer.
Kolkata: A month has passed since a class-II student died when his mother, taking him home on a scooter, lost control while negotiating an uneven stretch in Salt Lake. But almost nothing has changed on the ground. Despite assurances from civic and police authorities regarding comprehensive road repairs and safety measures, the only visible changes are two speed bumps installed near the accident site. The dangerous road conditions and other hazardous factors that contributed to the accident remain unaddressed.
On Nov 12, the 11-year-old boy was returning home from school on a scooter with his mother and cousin. All three were flung on to the road while the mother was trying to negotiate an uneven stretch. The boy died after sustaining fatal injuries when his head bumped against one of two racing buses passing through Salt Lake gate near Hudco crossing.
CM Mamata Banerjee was quick to react to the accident and asked cops to act tough on racing bus drivers, both of whom were arrested and booked with culpable homicide not amounting to murder. Prodded by the CM's reaction, a team from Bidhannagar traffic guard and engineers of Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation (BMC) conducted an examination of the accident spot and promised a slew of measures, including immediate repair of roads, levelling the raised metal covers of telecom cables that the woman was trying to negotiate, deploying more policemen throughout the day, and levelling the saucer drains to the road surface.
However, on a visit to the site on Wednesday, TOI found none of the promises had been kept. In fact, to make things worse, the potholes have widened, and encroachment in the form of dumped sand on a side of the road has made driving along the stretch more accident-prone. School children were also found riding on the stretch with their parents, still without helmets.
"The area is as accident-prone as it was a month ago. We thought things would change after the accident but all the multi-agency visits and initial deployment of cops have led to nothing. They just installed two humps on the two flanks a day after the accident," said Satyaki Banerjee, a Salt Lake resident who drives along the stretch every day.
Biswanath Karmakar, who runs a shop next to the spot, said, "For a few days after the accident, a guard rail was placed in front of the raised metal cover that led to the accident. We thought they would repair it, but nothing of that sort happened. In fact, after a few days, they shifted the guard rail to a side, and cars still ply on the dangerous part. A similar accident may happen any time."
Cops said they maintain heavy deployment in the area, especially during school dispersal, and said awareness drives to make kids wear helmets are also undertaken. A BMC executive engineer admitted nothing has been done on the accident stretch but said a tender was issued for repair works that has been approved. "A slew of repair works is on," said the officer.
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