Bloodbath continues on Moinabad-Aloor stretch
Rangareddy: The ghastly accident on the Hyderabad-Bijapur highway on Monday morning that left 19 people dead and dozens wounded and soaked the State into grief, raised many eye-brows. Experts are questioning safety of passengers who chose to take a journey through a narrow, rough and bumpy road from Moinabad to Aloor in Chevella mandal of Ranga Reddy district.
The tragic incident gives a deep insight into the alleged blind-eye towards development of the 45-km stretch on the National Highway 163 from Moinabad to Aloor which often turns a death trap always chasing commuters. The ill-maintained highway in a pathetic state continue to hunt commuters on this otherwise calm passage that covers areas such as Aziznagar, Moinabad, Chevella, Damargidda, Aloor and Mirzapur villages in Ranga Reddy and moves to Manneguda in Vikarabad.
The moment one enters the Moinabad area from Hyderabad, the poorly maintained pothole-filled, cracked and uneven highway welcomes to utter shock. Uneven patches, some even overpowered half of the highway every few meters poses a grave threat to travellers on the stretch.
“Accidents, some as ghastly as Monday’s, that make headlines on several occasions, are common on this stretch,” rued M Balaiah, a local resident.
In December 2020, a car collided with a bore-well drilling truck that left seven members of the same family belonging to Kalapathar (Hyderabad). The accident occurred on December 3 near Malkapur Gate in Chevella mandal on the Hyderabad-Bijapur Highway. The victims were heading to Karnataka following the same stretch that unleased a mayhem on Monday.
Four years later, another ghastly accident took place in the same area on December 2, in which at least four people killed and six injured when a speeding tipper rammed road-side vegetable vendors.
Mohd Ghouse, a passenger regular to this road, said, “Lack of proper supervision of this part of the highway over the years led to such ghastly accidents frequently. Despite loss of precious lives, no serious measures were taken at least to maintain the Moinabad-Aloor road”
“Officials from National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) frequently travel through the stretch when they are on their mission to carry out new projects. However, none gives a hoot about the pathetic state of this road that serves as a main passage that links at least three neighbouring States--Karnataka, Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh,” said Mallesh Goud, a construction material trader.
