PANJIM: The son of 72-year-old Venkatesh Karapurkar, who was knocked to death by a truck near the Chimbel Junction, Wednesday night, has refused to perform his father’s last rites till the speed breakers are installed at the accident site.
The deceased’s son said, “My family will not perform any final rites of my father till the speed breakers are installed at the junction. Today it was my father who lost his life. I don’t want to see another death here.”
Furious over the death of Venkatesh who was knocked by a truck at the junction while crossing the road on his way home, the locals had blocked the road twice at the site in protest on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, on Thursday morning several locals, the local MLA, leaders, and activists arrived for the inspection and demanded that speed breakers be installed at the accident site junction to prevent fatal accidents in the future. The family of the deceased also visited the spot and raised their voice.
Chimbel panch Sandesh Chopdekar demanded that the streetlights at the junction be made operational.
Sandesh said, “The Traffic Police deputed at the junction disperse from the location soon after the Chief Minister heads towards Panjim via this junction”.
He demanded that the entry to this bumpy service road be restricted to the traffic till it is leveled to ensure the smooth flow of vehicles.
Sarpanch Manisha Chopdekar said the locals will agitate on main highways if the action is not taken within a month.
The villagers also demanded the work on the Chimbel circle flyover be restarted and that the service road is opened to ensure the smooth flow of traffic.
It may be recalled that the locals had blocked the Old Goa-Panjim bypass when a truck heading from Chimbel to Old Goa knocked to death a 70-year-old pedestrian while crossing the junction.
Stating that malfunctioning of the traffic signal is one of the reasons for the fatal accident, Chopdekar threatened to agitate along with the entire villagers if their demands are not met.
Meanwhile, the North Goa Mamlatdar along with officials of the Public Works Department inspected the accident site and assured to fulfill the villagers’ demands within a month.
St Cruz MLA Rodolf Fernandes, who also visited the spot, assured that he would look into the matter and probe as to what led to the stoppage of the flyover construction work.
Meanwhile, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) State president Adv Amit Palekar on Thursday extended his support to the Karapurkar family, who lost a family member in an unfortunate accident that occurred at Chimbel-Ribandar junction on Wednesday.
Venkatesh Karapurkar, 72, was killed while crossing the road on Wednesday late evening after a truck jumped the signal. Following this tragic incident, the sons of the deceased senior citizen refused to accept the body until a speed breaker was erected at the junction.
In response, Adv Palekar said the Chimbel-Ribandar junction has become an accident-prone area due to faulty road design, unreliable signals, and a lack of police personnel to monitor traffic. For several years now, locals have been demanding a flyover at the junction. So far, nothing has been done, he said.
“In 2014, the BJP government had promised Chimbel villagers that it would begin work on the incomplete bridge within six months. But nothing has been accomplished since then. If the government can build a helipad within a day, why does it take them so long for this?” Palekar questioned.
Palekar said his constant demand led to the junction getting a signal a few months ago. PWD has now begun placing rumblers on Thursday evening after the family had refused to cremate the body. The fact that the government takes action only after protests is so unfortunate.
