Young activist walks 490 km to flag safety hazards on Mumbai–Goa Highway

For a long time, citizens have been staging protests and hunger strikes, expressing unrest and resentment over the long-pending and delayed project

MUMBAI: Amid mounting public anger over delays in the Mumbai–Goa highway project, a 28-year-old activist from Raigad district undertook a 490-km walk along the entire stretch to document safety lapses and draw attention to the risks faced by commuters. For a long time, citizens have been staging protests and hunger strikes, expressing unrest and resentment over the long-pending and delayed project.

After completing the walk, Chaitanya Patil identified 59 critical points and submitted a detailed report to Union road transport minister Nitin Gadkari through member of parliament Arvind Sawant.

Calling his campaign a ‘Rasta Satyagraha’, Chaitanya Patil, a resident of Kasu village in Raigad, spent 29 days walking along the Mumbai–Goa National Highway (NH-66), recording potholes, accident-prone stretches, incomplete works, missing road signs and other hazards that put commuters’ lives at risk.

“My only goal is to make the Mumbai–Goa National Highway safe, accident-free and of good quality so that people can travel without fear,” Patil said. “People’s lives should not be at risk because of bad roads.”

After completing the walk, Patil identified 59 critical points and submitted a detailed report to Union road transport minister Nitin Gadkari through member of parliament Arvind Sawant.

Patil began his journey on August 9 from Palaspe in Raigad and concluded it on October 20, with 29 days of on-field work. Heavy rains and health concerns forced him to take brief breaks. An engineering graduate, Patil compiled extensive data, photographs and GPS-tagged evidence, preparing a detailed report, based on his observation, using QR codes and digital tools to make the report more visual and lively, which he has started submitting to public representatives and authorities.

Patil pointed out several stretches where proper roads were missing, especially in areas where bridge work is still pending. He also flagged the absence of service roads and said nearly 75 to 85 km of work, including service lanes, is still pending.

In his 59-point note, Patil highlighted several accident-prone spots, including Karnala, Bhoste Ghat, Parshuram Ghat and other locations, with nearly 25 stretches identified as particularly risky. He also shed light on issues such as uneven roads, potholes caused by a poor drainage system and dangerously uneven speed breakers, all of which pose serious risks to commuters.

Throughout his journey, Patil carefully noted problem areas, captured GPS-tagged photographs and collected data to submit to the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), local administrations and government representatives.

“I have witnessed the Mumbai–Goa highway work since childhood and have seen accidents and stalled projects up close,” Patil said. “This walk is my attempt to draw attention to issues that have cost people their lives.”

During the walk, Patil also collected more than 1.5 kilograms of debris, including iron articles, broken glass bottles, hoardings and other waste, which caused accidents or tyre punctures on the highway and disposed of the debris safely.

Patil is no stranger to such activism. Since 2019, he has been raising concerns over the highway project, through phone calls and emails to various authorities, and also ran awareness drives on social media. “There are several instances where potholes I flagged were filled within 24 to 48 hours,” he said. Last year, he also prepared GPS-based photo data for the Palaspe–Mangaon stretch and shared it with the chief minister, NHAI and the concerned district authorities, which led to partial repairs.

Patil met several political leaders during the walk, with Chiplun MLA Bhaskar Jadhav accompanying him for a stretch in the region. He also submitted his findings to Sunil Tatkare, Aditi Tatkare, Uday Samant and other local representatives.

Despite these efforts, Patil said long-term solutions are still at large. “Every festive season, promises are made, but commuters continue to suffer. I hope this campaign will push authorities to take sustained action,” he said, while also urging motorists to follow traffic rules and drive responsibly to help reduce accidents.