Repairing Cracks on the Costly Nagpur-Mumbai Expressway: Corruption Allegations Arise

Maharashtra PWD Minister Dada Bhuse announced the repair of cracks on the Nagpur-Mumbai Samruddhi Expressway. Further inspections for additional cracks are underway. A viral video showed a crater on the expressway in Thane, disrupting traffic. Allegations of corruption and concerns over the high accident rate were raised by Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole.

Maharashtra Public Works Department (PWD) Minister Dada Bhuse on Thursday confirmed that cracks on the Nagpur-Mumbai Samruddhi Expressway near Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar have been repaired.

Bhuse revealed that authorities have been instructed to inspect the entire 600-kilometer route for more potential cracks. His statement followed the viral spread of a video showing a crater on the expressway in Sahapur, Thane district, which caused significant traffic disruptions between Shere Bere and Shendrun villages for several hours.

Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole attributed the cracks on the expressway, completed at a cost of Rs 55,000 crore, to corruption. He claimed that only the influential benefitted from the construction, which has been termed the 'highway of death’ due to frequent accidents. Patole went further to highlight similar issues with the Rs 18,000 crore Atal Setu project, criticizing Prime Minister Narendra Modi's guarantee on infrastructure reliability.