At least 7 dead and 10 injured in road accident near Jabalpur

Bhopal: In a tragic accident, at least seven people, including a three-year-old toddler, died while nine to 10 others were injured when a truck collided with an auto-rickshaw near Majhgawan police station, about 60 km from Jabalpur, on Wednesday.

The incident occurred on the Sihora-Katni state highway around 4:30 pm on Wednesday evening. The injured were taken to a health centre in Sihora and three seriously injured were later referred to Jabalpur, sources said. Outraged over the accident, local residents have blocked Chargawan Road, a major connecting road on the Sihora-Katni state highway.

According to reports, 17 agricultural labourers were returning to their village after work when a mining truck collided with an autorickshaw. The victims are residents of Pratapur village. The dead have been identified as Usha Bai (50), Ranubai Kol (19), Karan Kol (20), Bhura Kol (3), Shiva Kol (18), Kallu Bai (30) and Shobharam (45).

Some of the injured were identified as Kanahiya, Radhika, Manjobai, Radha and others. SDOP Sihora Parul Sharma along with a police party reached the accident spot and tried to pacify the troublemakers to resume traffic on the highway. Parul Sharma informed that the truck driver, the cleaner and the autorickshaw fled the accident spot soon after the incident. The police brought the situation under control and traffic on the highway was reopened after persuasion attempts.

The autorickshaw was carrying the 17 workers returning home after a day of harvesting soya beans. The truck that tipped over on the car was on its way to a mining company.

Chief Minister Mohan Yadav has announced ex gratia financial assistance to the families of those who lost their lives or were injured in a recent accident. Each family of the deceased will receive Rs 200,000, plus an additional Rs 15,000 from the Road Accident Fund. Sambal Yojana beneficiaries will receive an additional Rs 400,000.

Sihora MP Santosh Singh Badkare has donated Rs 5,000 to the family of the deceased. Injured persons will receive free medical treatment and Rs 7,500 assistance from the Road Accident Fund.