Three members of a family were killed and three children were injured when their car was hit head-on by a vehicle coming from the wrong direction near Bidhipur village on the Jalandhar-Amritsar national highway on Sunday evening, police said.
The collision occurred outside the regional headquarters of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF). A Maruti Swift carrying the victims was hit by a Toyota Innova driving on the wrong side of the road.
The deceased — Surendra Shukla, his wife Priyanka Tiwari (both aged around 30), and Surendra’s mother Jamwanti, 65 — were migrants who had been living in Bilaspur village of Ludhiana district for years. Surendra’s three daughters—aged 13, 8, and 1—are undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Jalandhar. The two elder daughters suffered fractures to both their legs. Teams from the Punjab Police’s Sadak Suraksha Force (Road Safety Force) carried out the rescue operation. While Surendra’s wife died on the spot, he and his mother succumbed to their injuries at a local hospital.
Assistant sub-inspector Pappu Gill, the investigating officer, said Surendra, who owned a courier shop in Ludhiana, was driving his Swift (PB10EP0569) toward Beas when the Innova (PB08CH6366) rammed into it. “The Innova driver was coming from the wrong side. The impact of the collision completely wrecked the victims’ car, leading to the three casualties,” Gill said.
{{/usCountry}}Assistant sub-inspector Pappu Gill, the investigating officer, said Surendra, who owned a courier shop in Ludhiana, was driving his Swift (PB10EP0569) toward Beas when the Innova (PB08CH6366) rammed into it. “The Innova driver was coming from the wrong side. The impact of the collision completely wrecked the victims’ car, leading to the three casualties,” Gill said.
{{/usCountry}}Ramandeep Singh, SHO of the Kartarpur police station, said the Innova driver, identified as Mukesh Chopra of Jalandhar, also suffered injuries. He is under treatment at a local hospital. The condition of the toddler injured in the incident is stable, he added. According to the police, appropriate action will be taken against the Innova driver once he is discharged.
Maya Shukla, Surendra’s sister, said the family has been devastated by the tragedy. “Surendra was the family’s sole breadwinner, and the entire family is now left destitute,” she said.
A case has been registered against Chopra under Sections 106 (causing death by negligence), 281 (rash driving) and 125-A (endangering life or personal safety of others) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.