Five dead, three children injured in accident on Yamuna Expressway

Five people were killed and three minors injured after their van was hit by an unidentified vehicle on the Yamuna Expressway in India.

Five people were killed while three others, all minors, were injured after the Maruti Eeco van they were travelling in was hit by an unidentified vehicle on the Yamuna Expressway in the early hours of Saturday, the Greater Noida Police said, adding that the injured people are undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Jewar.

The damaged vehicle after the accident. (HT PHOTO)

The incident took place around 1am. “Eight people, including three minors, were travelling towards Jewar in an Eeco van bearing a Delhi registration number when an unidentified vehicle rammed it at the 25-kilometre mark and fled. A police team patrolling the area reached the spot and rushed all passengers to the hospital,” said deputy commissioner of police (Greater Noida) Saad Miya Khan. He added that the accident happened under the jurisdiction of Rabupura police station.

Four of the deceased are aged between 30-40 years, while one was a minor girl aged 12, a police officer aware of the investigation said.

“All passengers were of the same family. They were heading to their home town Husainabad in Jharkhand for a funeral. The deceased have been identified as Upendra Baitha, 38, Bijendra Baitha, 36, Kanti Devi, 30, Kumari Jyoti, 12 and Suresh Kamat Baitha, 45,—all residents of JJ Colony in Madanpur Khadar near Kalindi Kunj in Delhi,” said Sudhir Kumar, station house officer (SHO), Rabupura police station.

The condition of the injured minors was said to be critical. “They have been identified as Suraj, 16, son of Upendra, Ayush, 8, and Aryan, 10, sons of Bijendra. According to doctors, their condition is critical,” said the SHO.

Kumar added that Upendra and Bijendra were brothers and Suresh was their cousin. “Upendra worked as a taxi driver while Bijendra was a mason. Their relatives arrived in Greater Noida on Saturday morning from Delhi after police informed them about the accident,” said the SHO.

He added that the spot where the accident occurred was not covered by any CCTVs. “We have deployed teams to nab the suspect and other CCTV cameras are being checked to identify the offending vehicle and the driver. The family of the deceased have submitted a complaint and an FIR is being registered against unknown suspects under charges of rash driving and death due to negligence of the Indian Penal Code,” said the officer.

Babban Kumar, deceased Kanta Devi’s brother, said the accident has finished a whole family. “The family was heading to Jharkhand for a funeral. This accident has finished a whole family. We are praying for the recovery of the three children who are under treatment. We hope the police nab the culprits who hit my sister’s vehicle,” said Kumar.

Meanwhile, in a second accident in the same area, two vehicles collided on Saturday noon while one was taking a U-turn. “A Volkswagen car with a Haryana registration number and a Toyota Fortuner with UP registration number were heading towards Agra on the Yamuna Expressway. At around 12 noon, the Volkswagen was taking a U-turn and was hit by the Fortuner. Three people were injured. They have been taken to a hospital by the police and the damaged vehicles have been removed from the expressway,” said SHO Kumar.