Bhopal/Dhar, Aug 9 (IANS) Six youths from Godhra and Panchmahal districts of Gujarat died in a head-on collision between a van and a trailer truck near Panchkawasa village on the Dhar-Ujjain-Petlawad four-lane highway in Madhya Pradesh on Sunday
The victims were returning home after offering prayers at the Mahakal Temple in Ujjain.
According to police, the accident occurred around 1:00 p.m. when the van (bearing registration No GJ17CK6134), carrying seven youths, was travelling towards Gujarat. A trailer truck (bearing registration No GJ39TB9248) loaded with iron goods was speeding on the wrong side of the Badnawar-Ujjain stretch towards Ujjain and smashed into the oncoming van.
The impact was so severe that the van was completely mangled.
Five of the six occupants died on the spot, while the sixth youth, who had suffered serious injuries, was alive when rescued. However, he died when he was being taken to the hospital.
“Those who were killed in the accident have been identified as Nitesh Bhai, son of Prakash Bhai (Godhra); Mayur Kumar Chouhan, son of Prakash Bhai (Godhra); Vishal Kumar, son of Ramesh Bai Parmar (Panchmahal); Rakesh, son of Bhupat Bhai (Godhra); and two others who are yet to be identified,” Vijay Dabur, Additional Superintendent of Police, Dhar, told IANS.
The trailer driver fled the scene immediately after the crash. However, upon receiving information, Badnawar Station In-charge Amit Singh Kushwaha, Tehsildar Suresh Nagar and SDM Priyanka Mimrod rushed to the spot with a police team, promptly chased the driver and apprehended him, the police officials said.
Local villagers and police personnel broke the van’s windows and, after considerable effort, extricated the bodies and the injured youth. The critically injured person was rushed by ambulance to Badnawar Civil Hospital for treatment but did not survive.
Police conducted a panchnama (formal inquest proceedings) at the site. The bodies of all six deceased have been kept in the Civil Hospital mortuary pending post-mortem examinations.
Police have informed the families of the identified victims in Gujarat about the tragedy.
A case has been registered against the trailer driver.
Traffic on the four-lane highway was disrupted for some time due to the accident, but police cleared the wreckage and restored normal flow.
–IANS
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