Former Intel India Head's Death Highlights Perils Faced By Cyclists In And Around Mumbai
It also highlighted the need for dedicated cycling tracks which often exist only on paper, cycling enthusiasts said.
The death of former Intel India head Avatar Saini in an accident has brought into focus how roads in the Mumbai region are becoming more and more perilous for cyclists and joggers.
It also highlighted the need for dedicated cycling tracks which often exist only on paper, cycling enthusiasts said.
Saini (68) died after being hit by a cab while cycling on the busy Palm Beach road in Navi Mumbai early Wednesday morning.
Last year, Rajlaxmi Vijay (42), CEO of a tech firm, was killed while on a morning jog when a speeding SUV hit her from behind in south Mumbai's Worli area.
Before that, in February 2022, 12-year-old Aksh Malu was knocked down by a speeding truck while he was cycling on Jogeshwari-Vikhroli Link Road in Mumbai with his father and a few others.
And in November 2017, a car mowed down veteran professional cyclist Ashok Khale (65) on Sion- Panvel Highway in Mumbai. Khale had won most of the major bicycle races in the country including a national championship.
Narayan Barse of the `Amhi Cycle Premi' foundation which works for cyclists in Thane and Navi Mumbai area said none of the municipal corporations in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region has provided truly dedicated cycle lanes, though promises and plans galore.
Cyclists' demands for infrastructure fall on deaf ears even as riding on city roads has become more perilous due to careless drivers, he told PTI.
Pradnya Mhatre, who heads a cycling group, said authorities are mostly indifferent to the concerns of the cyclist community.
Thane has a couple of cycling tracks, but they are often occupied by parked vehicles, she said.
A cycling track in Wagle Estate area simply disappeared over a few years, Mhatre said.
Police had banned jogging on the Palm Beach Road in view of accidents, said Deputy Commissioner of Police (traffic) Tirupati Kakde.
To prevent accidents involving cyclists, the traffic wing of Navi Mumbai Police will undertake a drive to sensitise motorists, he said.
There will be adequate police presence on the roads favoured by cyclists, including the Palm Beach Road and Sion-Panvel Highway, during morning hours, the DCP said, adding that strict action will be taken against violation of speed limits by the drivers of four-wheelers.
The construction of a 5.5 km cycle track between Nerul to NMMC headquarters on the Palm Beach Road is going on, civic officials said.
The work is in progress, municipal commissioner Rajesh Narvekar told reporters without specifying when it will be completed.
