Ponda: Recalling dozens of horrific accidents that have claimed several lives at the Manaswada-Kundaim slope on the National Highway that connects Ponda and Panjim, residents have called on the authorities to widen the stretch and build an underpass to prevent fatal accidents.
Even as road-users in the area have made repeated appeals to the government over the past 20 years, to make the stretch, which is frequented by loaded trucks and container lorries, safer, there has been no improvement, they complain.
The sharp turn at the junction is a safety hazard, especially to the crowds of people who wait to board buses at the Kundaim Manaswada bus-stop.
Local panch member Vishwas Fadte said that the stretch has witnessed several accidents in the past few months, the latest being last week, when a loaded truck tipped over and fell on a car, while trying to negotiate the sharp turn on the slope. The car driver managed to escape by jumping out of the passenger door at the very last moment. Several shops have also suffered damage due to road accidents, he added.
Another local, Vijesh Naik recalled that Yatin Warang from Tivrem was killed at this junction last year when a truck fell on a car.
When contacted, a National Highway Authority of India official said they were aware of problems faced by commuters. “The road at Kundaim will be widened into a four-lane road from Ponda to Bhoma and an underpass has been proposed here. We recently installed rumblers and speed breakers to prevent accidents at the spot,” he added.