Illegal horse-cart race sows chaos on Mumbai-Ahmedabad highway

An illegal horsecart race was witnessed along the MumbaiAhmedabad Highway on Sunday afternoon Eyewitnesses who recorded the race along the busy stretch said there were around six carts each being pulled by two horses that were mercilessly whipped by the riders to make them speed up Meanwhile motorcycleborne youth including young women cheered the ridersldquoI was returning from Thane in a car along with my friends on Sunday when we noticed absolute mayhem on the MumbaiAhmedabad Highway around 530 pm We saw an illegal horsecart race on the recently inaugurated Versova bridge in broad daylight an eyewitness told midday adding that a large group was following them on motorcycles chugging beer and throwing the empty bottles on the stretchAt least one rider was seated in every cart and one of them was a womanAccording to the eyewitness none of the bikers were wearing helmets and their reckless riding caused a major inconvenience to everyone using the road ldquoThe motorcyclists were also seen performing stunts on their bikes while the women cheered the riders by standing on the footrests of the motorcycles in motion with their hair blowing in the windrdquo said an eyewitness who was heading from Thane to Vasai adding that one of the youths also fell down amid the ruckus Meanwhile there were no policemen along the road as the ldquoentire stretch on the newlyinaugurated Versova bridge was blocked by the racersAsked where the race commenced and where the revellers went the eyewitness said ldquoI noticed them only when we reached the Versova bridge I presume they must be coming from Dahisar and heading towards Bhayandar or Naigaon I didnrsquot follow them as they were throwing empty beer bottles on the road and it could have caused a fatal crash This seems to have been a wellplanned race for a bet as the revellers had come in large numbers to throw traffic out of gearrdquoAnother eyewitness told midday that the revellers did not care about vehicles seeking passage on the busy stretch and completely occupied the highway ldquoNo one dared intervene due to their large numbers It was really problematic for those travelling from Dahisar to Vasai as all the lanes were occupied by them and no policemen were seen on the roadrdquoAnimal rights activist Vijay Mohanani said that the Supreme Court as well as the Bombay High Court has banned the commercial use of horse carriages ldquoYet they are seen near sea beaches in Mumbai Thane and Palghar districts We have been receiving several complaints from Uran and Alibaug areas and the local police have been apprised of this illegal practice But as usual the complaints are not being heardrdquo Mohanani saidAccording to Mohanani people place bets on these illegal races which can be held only because government officials are hand in glove with the violators ldquoThis is a big racket as people can make large amounts of easy money When complaints are made they disappear from the road It is very surprising that the cops are unable to control such illegal practices which are happening in broad daylightrdquo Mohanani added When midday apprised MiraBhayander Vasai Virar MBVV Police Commissioner Madhukar Pandey about the incident he said ldquoI will look into the matterrdquoDevidas Handore a traffic inspector from MBVV police said that there were seven horsecarts and all of them came from Mumbai ldquoAt least one rider was seated in each horsecart and in one cart there was also a woman They entered MBVV police jurisdiction in two lotshellip three carts crossed the Dahisar check naka at once and the remaining four carts followed them after a few minutesrdquo he statedAccording to Handore a traffic constable had asked the riders where they were coming from and one of them said Malad ldquoAt that time it was not certain if the bikers were with them But after a few minutes the bikers joined the race We have not given any permission for such a racerdquo Handore said adding that they are checking with Mumbai traffic police officials to ascertain where the group came from ldquoTheir movements are being tracked and strict action will be taken against themrdquomidday had reported on a similar incident in its December 27 2021 edition after an illegal horsecart race was held on the night of December 257No of horsecarts police say took part in the race