Taxi driver plunges into sea off old bridge

According to the Yellow Gate police and the deceased’s family, the accident occurred when the driver, Jayprakash Sharma, was driving in the area looking for passengers and fell off a dilapidated bridge while attempting to go towards the jetty

MUMBAI: A 63-year-old taxi driver died on Thursday night after his vehicle plunged into the sea near Bhaucha Dhakka, one of the city’s oldest fish landing centres, in Mazgaon. According to the Yellow Gate police and the deceased’s family, the accident occurred when the driver, Jayprakash Sharma, was driving in the area looking for passengers and fell off a dilapidated bridge while attempting to go towards the jetty.

A 58-year-old taxi driver, Jayprakash Sharma, lost his life when his taxi plunged into the Arabian Sea at Bhaucha Dhakka in South Mumbai when he was driving on an old bridge, once used by fishermen. (Raju Shinde/HT Photo)

The old bridge connects the jetty to Bhaucha Dhakka. Once upon a time fishermen would use it to go to their boats to set out for the morning catch. While they use a new bridge that connects to the jetty, the old partially demolished bridge lies defunct but without a warning sign declaring its fragile state.

Following the incident, the family has demanded an offence under section 100 of Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for culpable homicide be registered, as authorities, while demolishing the old bridge had not put barricades, which led to the taxi driver plunging into the sea. The family also claimed that only after Sharma’s death was the approach road to the old bridge blocked.

According to the police, Sharma was a resident of Kalbadevi and hailed from Pratapgarh, Uttar Pradesh.

A police officer said the incident occurred around 7:30 pm on Thursday. “As he drove towards the old bridge, which was dilapidated, he plunged into the sea. Fishermen in the vicinity who witnessed the accident informed the Yellow Gate police, who informed the fire-brigade,” said the officer.

Noticing the fall, a few local fishermen jumped into the sea and pulled Sharma out of the water. They took him to the J J Hospital, where he was declared dead on arrival. Later, the fire brigade fished out the taxi – a Hyundai Santro (MH01 BD 2488) -- from the sea.

“We have registered an accidental death report (ADR) and are investigating the offence,” said a police officer from Yellow Gate police station.

Dharmendra Dubey, Sharma’s roommate, said, “We are not sure why he drove on that bridge at all, since he has been driving in the vicinity for 40 years. Nevertheless, authorities should have barricaded the area around the old bridge; if that were done the accident would have been averted. We will request the Yellow Gate police to register an offence of culpable homicide not amounting to murder, on Saturday. We were busy conducting the last rites on Friday.”

Dubey has four daughters, two of whom are married, and a son who works in a small firm in Uttar Pradesh.