A tragic road accident on National Highway 319 in Bihar's Rohtas district claimed five lives and left 10 others seriously injured on Monday morning. The mishap occurred near Belwaiya Mathia turn under the Dinara police station area when a speeding truck rammed into a bus and a pickup vehicle, according to police officials.
Details of the Accident
The accident took place at around 3:30 am when the victims, all residents of Mathia and nearby villages, were returning home after attending a 'tilak' ceremony of Ashok Kumar Singh's daughter in Lodi village under Chenari police station area. The group had stopped near a village turn, with some passengers alighting from the bus while others were unloading items from the pickup vehicle. At that moment, a speeding truck ploughed into both vehicles, causing the fatal collision.
Victims Identified
The deceased have been identified as Ashok Kumar Singh (45), Pintu Kumar (35), and Rameshwar Singh (38), all residents of Mathia; Chhotu Kumar (20), a resident of Mishrwaliya under Natwar police station area; and Ram Barat Singh (44), a resident of Bhagwanpur in Kaimur district. The driver of the truck escaped from the spot after the accident.
Immediate Response and Compensation
The injured were rushed to the primary health centre in Dinara and later referred to Sadar Hospital Sasaram after their condition was found to be serious. On the instruction of Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary, the local administration handed over a cheque of Rs 4 lakh each to the next of kin of the deceased.
Investigation Underway
Police have seized the truck, while its driver managed to flee. The bodies were sent for postmortem to the sadar hospital. Senior police officials, including the SDPO of Bikramganj and SHOs from several adjoining police stations, are camping at the accident site and supervising the investigation. Dinara SHO Dharmendra Prasad confirmed that a case has been registered and efforts are on to apprehend the truck driver.
The accident has once again highlighted the dangers of reckless driving on highways. Authorities have urged commuters to exercise caution and adhere to traffic rules to prevent such incidents.
