July 5, 2025: It took six years to build, but only a few hours to temporarily shut down. On Friday morning, two of the four lanes of the under-construction Palava flyover on the busy Kalyan-Shil road—linking Dombivli and Kalyan to Navi Mumbai—were opened to the public, offering immediate relief to thousands of daily commuters.
However, within hours, two bikers skidded and fell—reportedly due to excess bitumen applied on the road surface. This incident prompted the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) to immediately close the newly opened lanes for safety reasons. The flyover was reopened later in the evening after repair work, including road gritting, was carried out.
An MSRDC official explained the cause: “The contractor applied excess bitumen to the road, which made it slippery. Once the lanes were shut, road gritting was undertaken.”
The sudden closure sparked political criticism. Dipesh Mhatre, Sena (UBT)’s Kalyan district president, alleged that the flyover was opened hastily despite being incomplete. He demanded police action against those responsible for the accident. Former MNS MLA Pramod Patil went further, claiming that substandard materials were used in the flyover’s construction and called for an independent audit.
The Palava flyover project, which began in 2019, faced multiple delays due to land acquisition hurdles and technical challenges. These prolonged delays had already led to public protests over the years.
While the partial opening was meant to ease traffic congestion in the rapidly developing region, the mishap and subsequent political uproar have cast a spotlight on concerns over construction quality and project execution.
Source: The Times of India
