CHENNAI: A pothole, on a notorious national highway stretch on the outskirts of Chennai, snuffed out the life of a 36-year-old software engineer on Thursday night.
The bike-borne Vinoth ran into the pothole, lost balance and fell on the road. Before he could get up, an oncoming truck ran over him and he died on the spot.
Police said Vinoth was returning home when he ran into the pothole at Perungalathur railway bridge on GST Road and confirmed that he was wearing a helmet at the time of the accident.
Minutes after the tragedy, while traffic police recovered the body and sent it to the Government Chromepet Hospital for post-mortem, the national highway officials rushed in to fill potholes on the stretch.
Vinoth, a native of Hosur, lived in Kolappakkam and worked with a company in Anna Nagar. He leaves behind his wife and a two-year-old daughter.
Inadequate funds allocated for road upkeep, says activist
The Tambaram traffic investigation police registered a case of death due to negligence against the truck driver, who is absconding.
In a similar incident on Dec 13, a 19-year-old girl was killed after she too hit a pothole and fell on the road, suffering fatal head injuries.
The accident-prone stretch in Perungalathur, part of the toll road on the busy Tambaram-Chengalpet highway, is one of nearly 55 accident hotspots along the route. The stretch has recorded more than 200 fatalities in the past five years.
It falls within the National Highways Authority of India’s (NHAI) Paranur toll plaza which has collected more than 600 crore in toll fees for the ‘maintenance’ of this 46-km stretch. “Yet inadequate funds have been allocated for road repairs and upkeep,” said Deivanandham, a local activist.
While NHAI’s neglect has left critical stretches riddled with hazards, the recent rain has further worsened road conditions. Non-functional streetlights compound the risks for drivers at night.
