3 charred to death in Rajasthan accident; DNA tests to establish identities

Rai Singh Suthar, a local police officer, said traffic movement was severely affected following the crash, and vehicles had to be diverted to ease congestion

Three people were burnt to death, and five others seriously injured after a sports utility vehicle collided head-on with a dumper truck and caught fire on the Pilani–Sadulpur road in Rajasthan’s Churu district late Thursday night, police said. The accident triggered traffic snarls.

Efforts were underway to ascertain the exact cause of the accident. (Shutterstock)

Rai Singh Suthar, a local police officer, said traffic movement was severely affected following the crash, and vehicles had to be diverted to ease congestion. The injured were rescued from the mangled vehicles with the help of residents and rushed to a nearby hospital.

Police said those killed are yet to be identified as their bodies were completely charred. Abhijit Patil, another police officer, said identification would only be possible through DNA testing. “The process [for the DNA testing] has been initiated,” he said. He added that efforts are underway to ascertain the exact cause of the accident.

Preliminary probe suggested that the vehicle, registered in Churu, was returning from a wedding in Pilani. A detailed investigation was underway.

The injured were identified as Pankaj, 20, Kamal, 22, Anand, 20, residents of Mandarpura village in Hanumangarh district, Vikas, 24, a resident of Sidhmukh town in Churu district, and Ashish, from Hisar district in Haryana.