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Day after Srinagar Thar crash, CM Omar Abdullah calls for better road sense
Following the accident, traffic police have started a drive to curb underage driving amid calls for stricter measures to avoid such accidents
Chief minister Omar Abdullah on Friday expressed his anguish over the death of two teenage boys who were killed after their SUV met with a mishap in Srinagar, calling for commuters to develop better road sense.
Following the accident, traffic police have started a drive to curb underage driving amid calls for stricter measures to avoid such accidents.
The mishap on Tengpora bypass road, caught on camera, revealed that a speeding Mahindra Thar vehicle hit a stationary truck before ramming into a road divider leading to loss of two 17-year-old school boys and serious injuries to a third.
“Heart breaking visuals. This accident claimed previous young lives & has had a devastating impact on their families. My heart goes out to the families of the boys killed in this tragic accident. May Allah grant them place in Jannat,” Abdullah said on X.
The CM urged for better road sense to avoid such accidents, adding, “Our cars get quicker, our roads get better but our road sense shows no sign of improving. Speed thrills but it kills with no remorse. Traffic rules are there for a reason, they keep us safe but only if we follow them.”
All passengers in the car were from the same school and were residents of Srinagar. Traffic police officials said four boys were in the car.
Senior superintendent of police (SSP, traffic) Muzaffar Shah said a case has been registered and investigation started, adding, “They were minors and were travelling at a very fast speed. They lost control over their vehicle and unfortunately died in the accident. It was an unfortunate accident in which two children died. In this case, we found the four passengers in this car were from a particular school.”
The SSP said minors in two separate vehicles were racing each other, adding, “They should not have been given access to the car by the parents. We have requested the parents many times not to give access to their vehicles to minor children.”
The traffic police, the SSP said, had already counselled one of the minors and his parents earlier about over speeding on an earlier occasion. “We had gotten the assurance by the parents that such a thing won’t happen. Unfortunately, we saw yesterday’s incident,” he said.
The car involved in the incident had also been challaned on two to three occasions.
“If the parents had not given access to the car to the minors, this accident would not have happened. The responsibility lies on the parents…,” he said, adding, “If one is a minor and without a driving licence, the parents should not give access to a two-wheeler or four-wheeler to them.”
Police said video evidence revealed that the vehicle was moving at very fast speed. “The vehicle first hit [a truck] and then climbed a divider. Maybe, if the speed was not too much, evasive actions could have saved their lives.” the SSP said.
“Often we would counsel minors, seize the vehicles but the way minors are getting killed in accidents, we are now forced to recalibrate and are focusing on minors… We will do more work and have started [drives against such driving] from the morning,” he added.
Srinagar’s chief priest at the Jamia Masjid, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, while speaking at the mosque also expressed sorrow over the loss of lives before urging parents to exercise caution in providing young individuals with vehicles, particularly motorcycles and cars.
“Parents must be wary of granting their children access to bikes and cars that they speed on, endangering their own lives and others.”
Mirwaiz called on authorities to take stringent measures to ensure compliance with traffic regulations and to promote road safety awareness.
