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By:

Quaid Najmi

4 January 2025 at 3:26:24 pm

Mumbai-Pune Expressway clogged over 24 hrs

Pune : The country’s oldest and first access-controlled Mumbai-Pune Expressway came to a grinding halt after a chemical tanker turned turtle on Tuesday evening – with thousands of vehicles stuck in traffic jams for over 24 hours – and the effects spilling over to the Old Highway No. 48 soon afterwards.   The vehicular snarl - described by locals as the worst-ever in the 26-year-old history of the critical thoroughfare linking the country’s commercial and cultural capitals – took the...

Mumbai-Pune Expressway clogged over 24 hrs

Pune : The country’s oldest and first access-controlled Mumbai-Pune Expressway came to a grinding halt after a chemical tanker turned turtle on Tuesday evening – with thousands of vehicles stuck in traffic jams for over 24 hours – and the effects spilling over to the Old Highway No. 48 soon afterwards.   The vehicular snarl - described by locals as the worst-ever in the 26-year-old history of the critical thoroughfare linking the country’s commercial and cultural capitals – took the travellers and the authorities by complete surprise leading to delayed response measures.   According to officials, the speeding tanker, carrying a highly inflammable and hazardous Propylene Gas, skidded and overturned in the tricky ghat sections near Ardoshi Tunnel yesterday evening around 5 pm, and blocked the Pune-Mumbai arm completely.   Police teams rushed to the accident spot, cordoned off the accident site, blocked the Pune-Mumbai 3-lanes and attempted to salvage the tanker.   Later, as a precautionary measure even the vehicles plying on Mumbai-Pune arm was closed and it started the ‘grandmother of all traffic jams’, stranding thousands of regular commuters, tourists, and special cases.   As the traffic didn’t budge for hours, angry motorists spewed their ire on social media drawing the attention of the Highway Police, and other local police departments from Raigad and Pune, plus teams of the SDRF and NDRF were deployed to avert any untoward incidents.   On Wednesday, local television reports showed clips of the traffic tie-ups that extended more than 45-50 kms kms in both directions, many travellers had spilled onto the roads, enraged and exhausted due to the heat, many frantically searching for elusive food and water making it harrowing for the kids or the elderly people.   Commuters’ travails on expressway Among the thousands trapped in the logjam of vehicles were a cancer patient from Latur who had to rush for medical treatment to Mumbai, many people rushing to catch international or domestic flights from either Mumbai or Pune.   There was at least one wedding party with the groom stuck in Mumbai and the bride stranded in Pune, plus many businessmen, tourists in luxury private buses, ST buses, senior citizens and kids in private cars or cabs and large commercial goods vehicles.   The curvy ghat section was the worst-hit where scores of vehicles had stopped and were parked awkwardly, leaving little space for manoeuvres and eyewitnesses said that many people were forced to relieve themselves on the roadside or in the bushes.   Several of the hungry and tired passengers, who spent the night sleeping in their vehicle seats, rued how their mobile batteries had died down, making it impossible to connect with anxious family members, and complained of total lack of information updates from the highway or police authorities.   As per latest reports by 7 pm, the police estimated that the overturned tanker would be shifted out before midnight after which normal plying of vehicles was expected.

Sharad Pawar ticks off Fadnavis on merger comment

MUMBAI: Nationalist Congress Party (SP) President Sharad Pawar scorned Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis for his comments a couple of days ago that the late Deputy CM Ajit Pawar “ had not informed the Bharatiya Janata Party” of the impending purported merger of his Nationalist Congress Party (NCP).

 

Shooting a dart at Fadnavis in his characteristic style, Pawar  said that “the CM was not involved in the talks between the two parties” - which split in July 2023.

 

“I cannot understand what right he (CM) has to mention my name. Since he was nowhere involved in the reunification discussions, he has no right to make any comments on it,” Pawar told the media in Baramati today.

 

Fadnavis’ utterances were viewed as directly questioning the credibility of Pawar, 86, a former CM and Union Minister, and uncle to the late Ajit Pawar, that left the NCP (SP) seething with rage.

 

Some NCP (SP)-NCP leaders also privately questioned whether allies are required to consult the BJP before taking any actions concerning their independent parties, and whether it was reciprocated in equal measure.

 

Asked if the merger would still go ahead, Pawar deftly replied saying the immediate priority is to support each other before deciding to chart the path ahead, but admitted that “as far as political discussions on the reunion are concerned, there are no talks on”.

 

He reiterated that the merger talks were being conducted by the late Ajit Pawar along with NCP (SP) leader Jayant R. Patil – who also confirmed the same independently last weekend.

 

Pawar had made the explosive revelation that the Ajit Pawar-Patil duo had fixed the merger date as Feb. 12 – as endorsed by Patil – but everything was put on hold owing to Ajit Pawar’s sudden death in an air-crash on Jan. 28.

 

Fadnavis’ comments that riled the NCP (SP) supremo went thus: “Ajitdada was part of the (MahaYuti) government. The NCP is an independent party in the alliance. Could he (Ajit Pawar) take such a decision without informing us (BJP). He was stable in the regime. In fact, the day before (the air tragedy), we were together (post-Cabinet meeting) and even chatted for an hour”.

 

To a query, Pawar said “we are very happy that Sunetra Pawar has become the Deputy CM”. “It’s a matter of joy and satisfaction that she has got the opportunity to serve in this high post,” he said.

 

However, Pawar denied any knowledge of plans for memorial to be erected on the campus of Vidya Pratisthan he had founded in 1972, and Sunetra Pawar is one of the Trustees, along with NCP (SP) Working President Supriya Sule, other family members and prominent personalities.

 

Ajit Pawar's last sentiments

In a final call made by the late Ajit Pawar before the ill-fated plane crash on Jan. 28, to a NCP worker Shrijit Pawar from Katewadi, he reportedly spoke about “taking everyone from all religions and castes along” in his political journey.

 

Shrijit claimed that Ajit Pawar spoke with him just nine minutes before the crash outside Baramati airport and even played excerpts of that tele-con when the ill-fated aircraft was on the descent.

 

The short conversation, barely a minute, took place at 0837 am, but almost 20 minutes earlier, Ajit Pawar had sent a message to Shrijit suggesting a Mali community (OBC)  candidate should be fielded for the Zilla Parishad elections.

 

Later, they spoke. “Ajitdada and I hail from the same village. When he was in range, he returned the call, saying that the NCP should take all communities, castes and religions along,” said Shrijit on that brief telephonic chat.

 

“The Mali community has been given representation in the ZP polls from the Supe group” said Ajit Pawar, to which Shrijit affirmed: “Yes, Dada, take whatever decision you feel is right”.

 

Lauding his late leader, Shrijit said that the call recordings proved how Ajitdada was keen to take every community along without any discrimination in the elections.

 

 


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