Mumbai Drilling Machine Collapse: Constable Santosh Gopal Chavan Dies After Piling Rig Collapses on Sion-Panvel Highway, Disturbing Videos Surface
A Mumbai police constable, Santosh Gopal Chavan, died after a piling rig collapsed on him on the Sion-Panvel Highway. The machine was allegedly placed on uneven ground. The BMC has ordered an enquiry and police are registering a negligence case. The incident is the third such construction-related accident in recent months.
A police constable was killed Tuesday night, April 28, after a section of a piling rig machine used in flyover construction collapsed on him on the Sion-Panvel Highway in Mumbai, raising fresh concerns over safety lapses at under-construction public infrastructure sites in the city. The incident marks the third such case in the past couple of months.
The deceased, Santosh Gopal Chavan, was returning home on his motorcycle after completing his duty. The incident took place shortly after he crossed the Mankhurd T-junction. According to police, a piling rig, a heavy-duty machine used for drilling deep foundations, was stationed at the site for ongoing flyover construction work. Mumbai: 1 Dead, 10 Injured As Group Falls Into SRA Construction Site Pit Near Metro Mall in Bhandup (Watch Video).
Mumbai Police Constable Killed As Piling Rig Machine Collapses on Sion-Panvel Highway
Another Video- 🚨 Tragic Accident in #Mumbai
A #Mumbaipolice constable, Santosh Chavan from Kurla Nehru Nagar police station, was killed after a drilling machine fell on him at an #MMRDA flyover construction site in #Mankhurd.
1/2 https://t.co/xZKURspb7l pic.twitter.com/SmH7OVrTQm
— Siraj Noorani (@sirajnoorani) April 29, 2026
Officials said the machine had been placed on uneven ground and was not properly secured. It later toppled sideways and part of it fell on Chavan.
Chavan, who suffered severe injuries, was rushed to a nearby hospital where he was declared dead, the official said. He was rushed to Hospital by bystanders but was declared dead on arrival. The constable, who was attached to the Nehru Nagar police station, was on deputation to the East Control Room in Chembur. Mumbai Metro Pillar Collapse: Maharashtra Deputy CM Eknath Shinde Suspends Executive Engineer After Pillar Collapses in Mulund; MMRDA To Cover Treatment Costs of Injured.
Meanwhile, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), which is executing the project, has initiated an enquiry and said action will be taken against the contractor.
Authorities have initiated legal proceedings, with Mankhurd police in the process of registering a case against the contractor for alleged negligence. Investigators are also examining the role of contractors and site supervisors, and whether mandatory safety protocols were followed at the construction site, police said.
The accident led to severe traffic congestion in Mumbai’s eastern suburbs, including on the Eastern Express Highway, an official said. Mumbai Traffic Police also reported slow movement near the Mankhurd new bridge on the northbound stretch due to the crane-related accident.
The incident adds to a string of recent construction-related accidents in the city. In a separate incident on April 15, a mobile crane toppled during Metro construction at the Bandra-Kurla Complex, though no injuries were reported.
Earlier, in February, one person was killed and three others injured when a slab of a Metro rail girder bridge under construction collapsed onto vehicles in Mumbai’s Mulund area.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 30, 2026 03:36 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
