TV singers still critical after highway mishap

The two contestants of the television show Sa Re Ga Ma Pa (Marathi), who were involved in a road accident on Friday morning on the Aurangabad-Jalna Highway, continue to remain critical.

The two contestants of the television show Sa Re Ga Ma Pa (Marathi), who were involved in a road accident on Friday morning on the Aurangabad-Jalna Highway, continue to remain critical.

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Apoorva Gajala and Rahul Saxena are being treated for head and limb injuries at hospitals in Aurangabad and Jalna, respectively.

Aurangabad-based sound recordist, Uday Dantade, who was travelling with them, died in the mishap, while the condition of their driver, Deepak Ghorpade, was termed as out of danger by doctors.

According to police, Gajala and Saxena were travelling in a Tata Indigo car with Dantade and Ghorpade when a truck crashed head-on into their vehicle.

A Ganpati mandal had organised a singing show for the two finalists of the television show, police said. After the show, the team had set out for Aurangabad at 3am on Friday.

When the vehicle reached Deulgaon junction a truck smashed into their car. “The impact of the collision was so great that the front portion of the car was completely smashed,” said a police officer from the highway police.

Dantade had been sitting next to Ghorpade. “The other members who were part of the team were following the Indigo car and immediately called for medical and police help when the accident occurred. They then took the injured to different hospitals nearby,” another police officer said. Dantade was taken to a hospital in Aurangabad but was declared dead on arrival as he had suffered severe head injuries.

The Jalna police have registered a case of causing death due to negligence against the unidentified truck driver and are making attempts to trace him.