MUMBAI: The collapse of a portion of the newly constructed Rs 7,000-crore Missing Link tunnel on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway brought traffic on one of Maharashtra's busiest highways to a standstill on Monday, leaving thousands of commuters stranded for hours without food, water or a way out.
The 19-km Missing Link project, built by the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC), was opened to traffic to reduce travel time between Mumbai and Pune by 20-25 minutes. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had described the project as an engineering marvel.
However, barely nine weeks after its inauguration, a section of the tunnel collapsed following heavy rainfall.
The disruption left vehicles stranded on both sides of the expressway for several hours. Rainwater also flowed onto the highway after the tunnel collapse, creating waterlogging and increasing the risk of vehicles losing control.
The MSRDC issued an advisory urging people to avoid travelling on both the Mumbai-Pune and Pune-Mumbai stretches of the expressway until normalcy was restored.
Responding to the incident, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis attributed the collapse to unprecedented rainfall.
"There are many things that are beyond our control. The rain was so heavy that it caused the landslide at the Missing Link. For the first time, a landslide took place on that particular portion of the highway. That resulted in over 100 tonnes of debris accumulating on the road. However, the fire brigade and other government personnel immediately rushed to the spot and cleared the debris," Fadnavis said.
The incident triggered a political slugfest, with the Opposition targeting the BJP-led Mahayuti government over the quality of construction.
Maharashtra Congress president Harshvardhan Sapkal alleged that corruption had compromised the project.
"The corruption is so huge that contractors were forced to spend over 50 per cent on paying kickbacks to MLAs, MPs, ministers and government officers, resulting in shabby work that collapsed within nine weeks of its inauguration. The Rs 7,000 crore spent on the Missing Link has been washed away in the rain," Sapkal alleged.
Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA and former minister Aaditya Thackeray also questioned the project, claiming its cost had escalated by several thousand crore rupees before its completion.
"Within two months of the inauguration, the Missing Link has crumbled. Besides, potholes have started appearing on the newly constructed road. It shows that corruption comes first for the current government, whether it is roads or temples," Thackeray alleged.