The West Bengal government has ordered an inquiry after a purported dashcam video appeared to show bikers skidding on Kolkata’s newly painted Rainbow Flyover during rain, prompting questions about whether the surface treatment used for Durga Puja affected road safety.
West Bengal Urban Development Minister Agnimitra Paul said officials had been instructed to visit the spot and establish the cause of the incident. The minister also said the government would consider an alternative arrangement if the colours were found to strain drivers’ eyes.
“The chief minister has instructed officials to visit the spot and inspect the matter immediately. The officials have been directed to investigate the cause of the accident,” Paul told mediapersons, according to The Indian Express. She said the road painting was temporary and had been undertaken for Durga Puja.
Paul rejected claims that glossy paint had been used on the flyover and said the surface had been treated with anti-skid paint. The initiative involved painting roads and creating alpona, or traditional floral motifs, as part of the city’s festival decoration. Paul has been associated with the road-painting drive and was recently seen drawing an alpona.
The incident has led to criticism from Opposition parties and raised concerns about the technical suitability of decorative coatings on carriageways used by motor vehicles. Congress leader Ashutosh Chatterjee wrote to Paul and Smita Pandey, commissioner and administrator of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation, warning that glossy or unsuitable paint could make a road surface dangerous, particularly when wet with rainwater, oil or diesel.
Chatterjee said the coefficient of friction could fall from 0.6–0.7 to below 0.3 under such conditions, increasing the risk of skidding for two-wheelers and cars. He also argued that ordinary oil paint lacks the technical properties of road-marking materials, including reflectivity and the use of glass beads that improve visibility at night and in wet weather.
The Trinamool Congress criticised the painting programme in a post on X, describing the flyover shown in the video as a “death trap” and alleging that accidents had occurred during the first spell of rain. The party called for accountability from the minister, although the government has not accepted the allegation that the paint caused the skidding.
Environmental specialist and green technologist Somendra Mohan Ghosh told The Indian Express that ordinary paint of different shades appeared to have been used instead of thermoplastic paint. He said such paints may not contain anti-skid materials. The report did not include an independent technical assessment of the flyover surface or a confirmed finding linking the paint to the incident.
Paul also said no government money had been used for the road-painting initiative. According to the minister, the work was funded through corporate social responsibility support after a paint company was requested to help beautify the city ahead of the festival.
The inquiry will determine the cause of the incident and assess whether the paint used on the flyover meets the required safety standard. The government is also expected to decide whether changes are needed to the surface treatment or the road-painting programme.
