Landslide shuts Malshej Ghat route for traffic till Thursday

THANE: The Malshej Ghat route will remain shut for vehicles for at least two days after a landslide and minor rockfalls blocked the road, 500m from Charti Point and 90km from Thane, early on Tuesday. A truck driver suffered minor injuries.

The National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) could remove only 10% of boulders because of suspicion over more landslides and rockfalls. It will resume clearing of the road on Wednesday morning. The landslide occurred after heavy rain.

Dinesh Mahajan, executive engineer of NHAI, said, “There was a major landslide accompanied by a minor rockfall around 3.30am. The landslide has completely blocked the road since Tuesday morning. There is heavy rainfall in the ghat. The visibility is also low owing to fog. Minor rockfalls are still being reported. The fear of another landslide is still lurking, thus we could not completely clear the road of boulders. We have completed 10% of the work and will resume on Wednesday morning because as it is unsafe right now. The ghat has been closed for traffic until Thursday.”

The Malshej Ghat route is a crucial link to Pune and Ahmednagar from Mumbai.

Chatri Point witnessed a landslide a month ago too. Malshej Ghat is a popular picnic spot among trekkers and adventure lovers especially during monsoon.

“People can use Pune or Nasik highway to go to Ahmednagar until the ghat route is reopened,” said Mahajan.