Tragic Incident : 15 Workers Killed as Crane Collapses During Construction of Samruddhi Expressway
A devastating accident occurred during the construction of the Samruddhi Expressway in Maharashtra, resulting in the loss of 15 lives. The incident took place on Tuesday when a girder machine collapsed, tragically claiming the lives of at least 15 workers. The machine, identified as a special-purpose mobile gantry crane used in bridge construction, fell on the workers during the third phase of the expressway’s construction.
Authorities, including two National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams, swiftly responded to the scene in Shahapur tehsil of Thane district to carry out rescue operations. Regrettably, five workers are feared to be trapped under the collapsed structure, according to the NDRF.
The girder machine, responsible for installing precast box girders in highway and high-speed rail bridge construction projects, proved fatal during the accident. Police, fire brigade personnel, and local agencies have been diligently working on the rescue mission. However, the death toll is expected to rise.
The Samruddhi Mahamarg, also known as the Hindu Hrudaysamrat Balasaheb Thackeray Maharashtra Samruddhi Mahamarg, is a significant 701-km-long expressway connecting Mumbai and Nagpur. The construction of this mega-infrastructure project is being undertaken by the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation, passing through ten districts, including Nagpur, Washim, Wardha, Ahmednagar, Buldhana, Aurangabad, Amravati, Jalna, Nashik, and Thane.
The first phase, spanning 520 km and linking Nagpur to the revered temple town of Shirdi, was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in December 2022. The remaining portion of the expressway’s construction, including the third and final phase, was expected to conclude by the end of the current year, as announced by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde in May.
