His way or the highway?

Ever since then,Pingle has been travelling in buses that ply on the Pune Nashik Highway and also goes to major bus stands to spread awareness about his cause. “I have started a campaign called Pune-Nashik Highway – Vote for Six Lanes. I travel in buses telling people about the many accidents that occur on this highway,what the possible solutions are and how multiple lanes facilitate easier travelling,” he says.

Currently,Pingle over 3000 commuters have signed the petition. He also has a Facebook community of the same name to connect with urban people. “It is a simple thought. Pune,Nashik and Mumbai form a golden triangle network. The time taken to travel from Pune to Mumbai is around three hours. Travelling to Nashik,which is also the same distance from Pune,takes seven hours,” he says. In addition to the road mishaps,which occur as frequently as twice or thrice a week,commuters waste nearly three hours travelling one way.

Once he has completed 10,000 signatures,Pingle will meet the concerned authorities and also put forth the discussion in the media to highlight the seriousness of the problem. In a recent report published by the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI),1168 deaths have occurred over the last six years on the highway. “Is the government so irresponsible that it cannot care for so many accidental deaths on this national highway?” he asks.

Another important point that he argues about is the MIDC in Nashik. He says that major companies prefer to go to Gujarat instead of Nashik owing to the bad connectivity. “The MIDC at Chakan is already full while the one at Sinnar has vast tracts of empty lands. People are not the only ones who are affected by the bad roads; the state economy suffers too,” he says.

Apart from the demise of his brother,his cause was further motivated by his visit to the US for work and his meeting with Anna Hazare. He says,“I saw how systematic the traffic was in America. When I met Anna Hazare,he told me that once there was sufficient backing for the cause,authorities would be compelled to take action on the issue.” Thus,his battle continues.