Speeding truck kills 6 people in Odisha

At least six people, includingthree women, were killed after being run over by a speedingtruck near Sarankul area of Odishas Nayagarh district onTuesday, police said.

The incident occurred when the driver of the truckproceeding from Nayagarh towards Sarankul lost control overthe vehicle and rammed into a motorcycle at Narendrapur,killing both the riders on the spot, Inspector In-Charge(IIC)of Sarankul Police Station, B N Mallick said.

The truck then ran over some pedestrians, mostlylabourers, he said, adding that three of them were killed onthe spot while another person who had sustained grievousinjuries succumbed during treatment in hospital.

“Altogether six persons have been killed in the roadaccident,” the IIC said.

The driver of the truck fled the scene soon after theaccident and efforts are on to nab him, police said, addinginvestigation into the incident is underway.

Angry over the incident, irate locals staged ademonstration by blocking the state highway between Nayagarhand Bhanjanagar demanding adequate compensation to thefamilies of the deceased and effective road safety measures inthe area.

Every bereaved family should be provided with at leastRs 20 lakh and the administration must put in place aneffective mechanism to check over speeding by vehicles andreckless driving, said a protester.

Senior officials of Sarankul and Nayagarh policestations and district administration have rushed to the spotin order to defuse the situation and end the road blockade.

“Talks are on with the protesters to resolve the issueamicably and ensure restoration of normal traffic on the roadat the earliest,” said an official.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Federal staff and is auto-published from a syndicated feed.)