In a move that may impact Mumbai-Gujarat travellers, heavy vehicles have been banned on the Palghar-Mumbai Ahmedabad National Highway for two days. Reason? A long march has been organised by farmers. Led
by the Communist Party Marxist and the Kisan Sabha, it will start from Charoti in Dahanu and is expected to reach the Palghar District Collector’s office the next day.
The curbs
The Maharashtra government has banned heavy vehicles coming from Gujarat to Mumbai for two days.
The change is owing to a long march being organised by the Communist Party Marxist and the Kisan Sabha.
Drivers are being asked to use alternative routes.
The alternative routes
Drivers of heavy vehicles have been advised by the administration not to use traditional routes, as there will be large crowds of vehicles and marchers on the roads over the next two days.
Police will be paying special attention to keep highway traffic smooth. Drivers have been instructed to use alternative routes, and police have also been deployed to control local roads.
What are the farmers’ demands?
More than 50,000 members of the Marxist Communist Party and farmers are expected to participate in this march.
Various pending demands of farmers and tribals will be presented, including loan waivers for elderly farmers, irrigation schemes, higher prices for farm produce, protection of tribal lands, and ensuring tribals get benefits from government schemes.
A unique feature of the march is that farmers will bring bullock carts and plows with them, making this protest potentially historic. The Palghar district administration has taken several measures to keep the situation under control.
The Mumbai-Ahmedabad Expressway
The Mumbai-Ahmedabad Expressway refers to the Gujarat and Maharashtra sections of the 1,350 km Delhi-Mumbai Expressway project.
Ahmedabad to Vadodara: The 93.1 km National Expressway 1 (NE1) is fully operational and has been for several years, reducing travel between these cities to approximately one hour.
Vadodara to Navsari: Following recent trial openings in early January 2026, there is now uninterrupted expressway connectivity from Ahmedabad all the way to Navsari.
Bharuch to Kim (Package 5): This critical 25–31 km stretch, including a major bridge over the Narmada River, opened for trial runs on January 10, 2026.
Under Construction
Navsari to Mumbai: The southern section toward Mumbai remains under active construction. Work between Virar and Talasari is nearing completion and may be operational by April 2026.
Full Completion: While major portions are ready, full official completion of the entire 1,350 km Delhi-Mumbai route is now projected for 2027–2028 due to specific land acquisition and technical delays in the 87-km Gujarat bottleneck.
