Engineer walks on NH 66 from Mumbai to Goa; exposes deadly road hazards

A lengthy and lonely but a purposeful walk is what Chaitanya Patil an engineer by profession decided to on the National Highway 66 from Mumbai to GoaAlso a social activist Patil told midday he had been working on making Mumbairsquos roads better for people since his college days ldquoWhile in college I used to post on social media pointing out issues like potholes etc Sometimes the authorities would reply and fix the issues and sometimes they wouldnrsquot It was then that I realised that we need to constantly remind them of things for them to get things donerdquoWhile he was actively working on making things better on the road infrastructure front he had filed a few RTIs wanting to know how many accidents happen on roads near the Konkan beltChaitanya Patil during the press conference at Press Club in Mumbai PicShadab KhanHe said ldquoWhen I got my replies I was shocked to see that just in Raigad there were more than 100 accidents which were happening and which led to deathsrdquoStarting his walk on the NH 66 Patil also recorded all the problems and safety hazards on the road with GPS locations in each photo giving the reason for that He said ldquoWithout those authorities can say that the photos are not from the highway so I used my engineering knowledge and decided to have GPS in each photo as with the help of the longitude and latitude of each photo anyone in the world can see where the photo was taken Along with that sending multiple photos would make it harder for authorities to identify the areas so I resorted to QRs which compiled everythingrdquoWhen asked about which were the areas he found most dangerous in terms of the road Patil pointed out that Nagothane Sangameshwar and Ratnagiri were some of the places where the roads were in the worst conditions with the sides of the roads often filled with debris ldquoEven in patches where the road was new I observed that potholes were in the middle of the road which no one driving on the highway at high speeds would expect and would lead to fatal accidentsrdquo he saidHe added ldquoWhen accidents happen we often hear that the families would be given remuneration but thatrsquos not the best option prevention of accidents is When in every other situation we choose to prevent things before they happen how do we not hope for the same on the roads we drive onrdquoThe locals of towns around the road were also intrigued by Patilrsquos initiative talking about them he told midday ldquoI still get calls and photos from them keeping me updated on the condition of the roads there They have lost boys who are bears over 25 One of the boys was 22 he has gone into a coma and still hasnrsquot woken up It is they who suffer the most those who have to use the road dailyrdquoChaitanya Patil pointed out the problems at Mumbai Goa National Highway 66 PicShadab KhanPointing out that most families who are not affluent donrsquot have enough liquid funds to care for their family members who have suffered an accident and need longterm care he said ldquoThey sell their lands for money but there is only so much they can sell before running out of optionsrdquoThe authorities on the other hand have not yet given Patil a concrete response for his reports he claims ldquoI keep getting the generic response that my complaint has been sent to the concerned authorities but have not received a single replyrdquoWhile also being someone who has a fish farming business of his own when asked how he managed his finances he said ldquoI choose to lose a monthrsquos income to try and save lives by doing this My whole point is that everyone keeps saying someone should do something so I become the someone who does something to help peoplerdquo