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9 dead, 14 injured in Tumakuru after truck collides with tempo
“Nine people have died near Balenahalli in Shira of Tumakuru. Several others are injured. This is a very unfortunate incident,” home minister Araga Jnanendra, said on Thursday in a statement.
At least nine people died and 14 were injured after a truck collided with tempo in the early hours of Thursday near Tumakuru, about 70 km from Bengaluru, the state’s home minister said.
“Nine people have died near Balenahalli in Shira of Tumakuru. Several others are injured. This is a very unfortunate incident,” home minister Araga Jnanendra, said on Thursday in a statement.
According to the police, the multi-utility vehicle (MUV) was ferrying daily wage labourers from Raichur to Bengaluru.
Jnanendra said he had instructed the district authorities and police to ensure proper treatment of the injured.
“After we got the bodies to the hospitals for post-mortem, their family members, despite being in so much grief, came forward to donate their eyes. Families of six people have donated their eyes,” Mamata M, Sira tehsildar said.
The MUV left Raichur at 1 pm on Wednesday and around 4.30 am the vehicle overtook the lorry which hit it from behind, toppling it and eventually hitting the divider.
Most of the injured are being treated in the district hospital while two who are serious have been moved to NIMHANS in Bengaluru, officials said.
“They left in a cruiser at 1pm yesterday…around 4.30 am today when their vehicle overtook the lorry, the lorry hit the vehicle from behind leading to it toppling and hitting the divider. Nine people have died on the spot and remaining 15 have been shifted to district hospital for treatment, out of then 2 serious cases have been sent to NIMHANS in Bengaluru,” Tumakuru deputy commissioner Y S Patil was reported as saying by PTI.
Chief minister Basavaraj Bommai expressed grief over the loss of lives and announced ex-gratia of ₹5 lakh to the families of the deceased. He added that the government would bear the cost of treating the injured.
“The state government will give ₹5 lakh to the families of the deceased. Compensation will be given and the government will bear the entire medical expenses of the injured. And I have instructed the police officers of Tumakuru to conduct a comprehensive investigation into the incident and submit a report,” the CM said in a post on Twitter. The issue was also discussed in the state cabinet.
President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi also offered their condolences.
“The loss of lives, including that of children and women, in a road accident in Tumakuru, Karnataka is extremely unfortunate. My deepest condolences to the bereaved families. I pray for the speedy recovery of the injured,” President Murmu tweeted.
A tweet from the Prime Minister’s office quoted Modi as saying: “The accident in Tumakuru district, Karnataka is heart-rending. Condolences to the bereaved families. Prayers with the injured. ₹2 lakh from PMNRF would be paid to the next of kin of each deceased. The injured would be paid ₹50,000.”
In August, six members of a family, including a six-month old infant, died in an accident near Arakera (K) village of Gurmitkal taluk in the north eastern part of Karnataka.
On May 24, eight people were killed and 28 others injured in a collision between a private passenger bus and a truck on Pune-Bengaluru national highway in Hubballi. Police, who registered a complaint in the case, said the driver’s negligence and over speeding resulted in the accident.
In almost every accident, authorities have blamed over speeding and rash driving as the reasons, however, the larger problem of road safety hasn’t been addressed, HT reported in June.From the design of highways to the lack of transport facilities in all of these accidents, the local residents had pointed out several flaws that had led to the accident.
