The tragic menace of hit-and-run deaths continues to strike Mumbai, with the residential suburb of Powai in central Mumbai being the latest area to witness such a case. On February 7, between 12:00 pm and 12:30 pm, a speeding Bolero pick-up vehicle struck security guard Ajay Rajendra Singh near Lake Home, close to the IRB Company, on Chandivali Farm Road in Powai. The driver of the vehicle fled the scene after running over Ajay, a security guard at Hiranandani Gardens in Powai. The police have registered a hit-and-run case against the unidentified driver for negligent driving and have initiated an active search to apprehend the accused.
Tragedy has struck Ajay’s wife, Meena, with whom he lived in Chandivali. Meena received a call from her neighbour a few minutes after the accident, informing her about the incident. Upon reaching Hiranandani Hospital, Meena learnt that Ajay had sustained severe facial and neck injuries. Ajay was declared dead at the hospital around 1:15 pm.
Such incidents have become all too common in Mumbai and other Indian cities too. This should be an issue of utmost concern for the residents of Mumbai as any one of them could become a victim of such negligent driving in the future.
In 2025, hit-and-run cases in Mumbai led to 374 road-crash fatalities, much lower than the 611 fatalities recorded in 2015. 2024 had seen 370 road-crash fatalities in Mumbai. These numbers, however, do little justice to the people who have lost their kin in such cases.
Analysts attribute this menace to multiple factors, including road encroachments, heavy traffic congestion, drink-driving, fatigued driving, weak lane discipline, poorly maintained footpaths, appalling municipal governance, inadequate lane markings, low conviction rates, and a lack of trust in law-enforcement mechanisms. A broader absence of a deeply ingrained road-safety culture has also contributed to the loss of many innocent lives.
Several measures have been taken by the Mumbai authorities to curb this menace, including the identification and infrastructural rectification of accident-prone areas, enhanced surveillance, the deployment of advanced software to detect irregular driving patterns, installation of additional CCTV cameras, strengthening of legal provisions, public-awareness campaigns, and clearly marked crosswalks. Unless there is sustained and strict enforcement of these measures with severe penalties for offenders and Mumbai’s roads and footpaths become pedestrian-friendly, such deaths will continue to traumatise the city’s families. It is hoped that such measures will significantly reduce this menace, if not eradicate it altogether.
Subscribe Deshwale on YouTube
