Landslides on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway will soon be a thing of the past, as troubled spots have now been covered with steel wire rope nettings. The entire project was undertaken by the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) at the cost of `6 crore.
According to officials, the net-like steel meshes, which now cover the huge rock faces on the ghat section of the Expressway, have been made of superior quality steel.
The work on the six-kilometre section from Adoshi Tunnel to Amrutanjan Bridge was completed in mid-February. “Work started in December 2010. The steel meshes have been installed in a way that the soil on the ghats is not disturbed, hence, preventing further soil erosion,” said executive engineer A.P. Abrol from the MSRDC’s Pune office. The other dangerous spots include the Borghat section near Khandala and Dukes Retreat Point Hotel.
According to Mr Abrol, the project was technically challenging as there were possibilities of loose soil crashing down. “An appropriate time had to be selected. Meshing work becomes difficult when it is raining. We also had to ensure that traffic is not affected during the installation,” he said. At least five people have been killed due to landslides in the last four years. According to a traffic police official at Khandala Traffic Aid Post (TAP), motorcyclists are most vulnerable at the Andakruti stretch, where the old Mumbai-Pune highway and the Expressway meet.