Police have detained the driver of a tempo after its collision with a truck in Maharashtra’s Palghar district that claimed 13 lives, and registered an FIR against both drivers for violating road rules, officials said on Tuesday.
Palghar District Guardian Minister Ganesh Naik, who visited the accident site late Monday night, said heavy traffic on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad highway, coupled with the tempo driver taking a wrong-side shortcut in violation of traffic rules, led to the fatal crash.
"This highway witnesses heavy traffic. There is a dire need for greater awareness regarding traffic regulations and the law. In an unfortunate attempt to avoid a long route and take a shortcut, the tempo was driven on the wrong side of the highway, which led to this collision," Naik told reporters.
The tempo, packed with 30-40 passengers, was heading for an engagement ceremony when it collided with a speeding sand-laden truck near Dhaniwari village under Dahanu taluka on the highway at around 4 pm on Monday, killing 13 persons and injuring 14 others, officials said.
A statement from the Palghar district administration said the tempo was moving on the wrong side of the Mumbai-Gujarat lane. Upon reaching Dhaniwari village, a truck coming from the opposite direction lost control, and its container box collided heavily with the left side of the tempo.
A motorcycle was also caught in the pile-up, it said.
The truck overturned, and the victims got trapped beneath its cargo.
An FIR has been registered against the drivers of both the truck and the tempo under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Motor Vehicles Act, an official from Kasa police station told PTI.
The 45-year-old tempo driver has been taken into police custody for further investigation. The truck driver, who was injured, is currently undergoing treatment at a hospital under police watch, the official said.
Palghar Guardian Minister Ganesh Naik visited the accident site and also met the survivors at the hospital late Monday night. He said the crash occurred due to traffic rule violations and stressed the need for greater awareness of road regulations.
This dangerous practice is rampant on the route.
On May 1, a dumper collided with a car carrying Palghar BJP MP Hemant Sawra at a different location on the highway. While Sawra escaped unhurt, the car driver suffered minor injuries.
Naik said the government will bear the full medical expenses of all those injured and will continue to take care of them even after they are discharged.
The 14 injured persons were currently admitted to Vedanta Hospital in Dahanu. Three of them were in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), while the others were under observation and reported to be stable, Palghar regional disaster cell Subash Bagde said.
The postmortem examinations were completed, and the bodies were being handed over to relatives, Dahanu Tehsildar Sunil Koli said.
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has announced compensation of Rs 5 lakh each to the kin of the deceased.
