Palghar: A massive traffic jam on the Mumbai–Ahmedabad National Highway in Maharashtra’s Palghar district left more than 500 students and commuters stranded for nearly 12 hours, officials said on Wednesday.
About The Gridlock
The gridlock, which stretched for nearly 70 kilometres near Vasai, began around 5.30 pm on Tuesday and continued until the early hours of Wednesday. Twelve buses carrying students from Classes 5 to 10 of various schools — along with some college students from Thane and Mumbai — were caught in the chaos while returning from a school picnic near Virar. It left six buses of students from a well-known Dadar school and six buses of students from Malwani stranded without food or water overnight.
The students from the Dadar school were returning from a picnic at The Great Escape Water Park in Vajreshwari on Wednesday when they became trapped in the gridlock. Despite a normal travel time of two to three hours for the 70 km journey, the students did not reach home until 6 a.m. the following day, sparking outrage over the dangerous traffic situation.
For hours, the children were left without food or water, as vehicles barely crawled along the highway. By nightfall, many students were exhausted, anxious, and hungry, while their parents waited in distress for updates on their safety.
Members of a local social organisation rushed to the scene to assist. They distributed water and biscuits to the stranded students and helped drivers navigate the choked lanes.
The traffic snarl was triggered by the diversion of heavy vehicles from the Ghodbunder Highway in Thane, where ongoing repair work had shifted the traffic burden onto the Mumbai–Ahmedabad route. A lane closure near the Indian Oil petrol pump on the Thane-bound carriageway, scheduled until October 14, further compounded the issue.
Despite the road closure, there was no visible presence of traffic police from the Mira-Bhayandar Vasai-Virar (MBVV) police to manage the gridlock. According to reports, attempts to contact the police were met with no response.
Some buses carrying students managed to take detours, while others inched forward through the night. The buses reached its Dadar safely by 6 am on Wednesday, sources said.
Frustrated parents and locals slammed the authorities for poor coordination and planning. The incident has highlighted the need for better planning and coordination by authorities to prevent such dangerous and distressing situations in the future.
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