Biker is third pothole death on Thane road

A 42-year-old man died after he fell off his motorcycle when it hit a pothole near Bhiwandi late on Monday. Rajendra Dattu Dongre, a driver, was returning home in

A 42-year-old man died after he fell off his motorcycle when it hit a pothole near Bhiwandi late on Monday. Rajendra Dattu Dongre, a driver, was returning home in Shegda village, Wada taluka, when the accident took place on the Wada-Bhiwandi stretch. Dongre’s is the third pothole death on the same stretch this month.

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“Dongre fell on the road after hitting the pothole and sustained severe head injuries. Local residents informed the police and took Dongre to a nearby hospital, where he was declared dead on arrival. He was not wearing a helmet,” said a police officer from Palkhane station, Bhiwandi.

The two-lane Wada-Bhiwandi road is riddled with potholes and uneven patches. After protests earlier this month, when a doctor died in a pothole accident, toll was waived off on the stretch. “The public works department is supposed to carry out repairs, but it has failed. The road has been in a pathetic condition for a long time. After the monsoon, we were expecting officials to repair it. Nothing has been done,” said Abhimanyu Sonowale, 25, one of the passers-by who helped take Dongre to the hospital.

“A case has been registered under sections 304 (A) (rash and negligent driving) and 279 (causing death due to negligence) of the IPC. Dongre was the sole breadwinner and is survived by his wife, a son and a daughter,” said another police officer.

On October 9, Neha Sheikh, 23, a doctor, was run over by a truck after she fell off her bike when it hit a pothole on the Wada-Bhiwandi road. After protests by residents, they waived toll there.

Two days later, a 56-year-old man was run over by a mini truck as the driver looked to avoid a pothole on the same stretch.