Seven dead, 19 hurt on Samruddhi Mahamarg; Wadettiwar attacks state government over road safety

Nagpur: Seven people were killed and more than 19 injured in a major accident on the Samruddhi Mahamarg in the early hours of Friday. Following the crash, Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar targeted the state government over the rising number of accidents on the expressway.

Speaking to reporters at Nagpur airport, Wadettiwar said the Samruddhi Mahamarg was increasingly becoming a "road of death" instead of a road of prosperity. He alleged that hasty construction and alleged commission-taking had left the expressway in poor condition. He also demanded that the real causes of the accidents be found and firm action taken on them immediately.

Calling the issue of accidents on the expressway serious, Wadettiwar claimed that about 650 people had died in the past two years. Available government figures, on the other hand, show 128 deaths in 142 accidents on the expressway in the eight months from January to August 2026.

Wadettiwar also demanded that the government immediately give financial assistance of at least Rs 10 lakh to the families of those killed in the accidents. He said that putting up information boards at dangerous spots or deploying rescue teams was not enough. In his view, it is the government's responsibility to put effective safety measures in place to prevent accidents.