The move followed after Shiv Sena MP Rajendra Gavit met the Union minister in New Delhi on Friday and apprised him about the shoddy construction work following which Gadkari directed action.

Mira-Bhayandar: Less than a fortnight after three people were booked for the shoddy work in constructing the road on the Gujarat-bound bridge running over the Versova creek in Kashimira, Union minister for road transport and highways Nitin Gadkari has directed the state government to blacklist contractors and agencies which had been hired for executing the project.

The move followed after Shiv Sena MP Rajendra Gavit met the minister in New Delhi on Friday and apprised him of the shoddy construction work. Less than four months after it was opened for vehicular movement the northbound lanes of the bridge developed multiple potholes exposing the poor-quality of work which posed a serious threat of mishaps to motorists and bikers. After Gavit’s intervention, who met the MBVV police officials, the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) filed a complaint with the Kashimira police station.

Shoddy work on potholes

A police team conducted spot inspections and after investigations registered an offence under section 336 (whoever does any act so rashly or negligently as to endanger human life or personal safety of others) of the Indian Penal Code on July 26 against three contractors Vijay Mistry, Ashish Sharma and Ashok Thorat who are attached to both the companies facing blacklist.

However, none of them have been arrested so far. Although the potholes were cosmetically repaired, they re-emerged following a few days of heavy rains.

“I met the union minister and apprised him about the inferior quality work on such a crucial bridge which connects the Mumbai-Ahmedabad national highway near the Ghodbunder junction in Kashimira. He responded positively and immediately instructed the concerned officials while directing them to blacklist the contractors and ensure that such incidents are not repeated again,” said Gavit. 

Constructed at an estimated cost of around Rs250 crore, the work for the 2.25km bridge started in 2018 and four lanes were opened for vehicular movement as an alternative to the old Gujarat-bound bridge on March 27.