Samruddhi Expressway accident: 17 killed after girder machine collapses in Maharashtra's Thane

"Two NDRF teams are working at the site after a crane fell on the slab of a bridge in Shahapur tehsil of Thane district," the NDRF was quoted by ANI as saying.

Expressing grief over the incident, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh from the PMNRF for the next of kin of each deceased.

"The injured would be given Rs 50,000," the Prime Minister's Office said.

The machine is a special-purpose mobile gantry crane used in bridge construction. It is used to install precast box girders in highway and high-speed rail bridge construction projects.

The accident took place in the early hours on Tuesday near Sarlambe village in Shahpur tehsil, an official said.

The Samruddhi Mahamarg, named Hindu Hrudaysamrat Balasaheb Thackeray Maharashtra Samruddhi Mahamarg, is a 701-km-long expressway connecting Mumbai and Nagpur. It traverses ten districts including Nagpur, Washim, Wardha, Ahmednagar, Buldhana, Aurangabad, Amravati, Jalna, Nashik and Thane.

The construction of the Samruddhi Mahamarg is being carried out by the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation.

The first phase, connecting Nagpur to the temple town of Shirdi, was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in December 2022. It covers a distance of 520 km.

Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said in May that the third and last phase would be completed by the end of December this year.