Keonjhar: Eight persons died and 12 others sustained injuries when the van in which they were travelling crashed into a stationary truck on NH-20 near Balijodi in Odisha’s Keonjhar district early on Friday.
Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik expressed grief over death of eight persons in a road accident near Ghatagaon and announced an ex-gratia of Rs 3 lakh each for the next of kin of the deceased. Besides extending condolences to the bereaved families, the CM also ordered free medical treatment to the 12 injured and wished them speedy recovery.
According to sources, the force of the accident was so intense that seven occupants of the van died on the spot while another succumbed at a hospital. Five of the injured are undergoing treatment at district headquarters hospital. The remaining three victims were later shifted to SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack as their condition deteriorated.
“Three women and four men died on the spot. Condition of two of the injured is stated to be critical,” Ghatagaon SDPO Sundarsan Gangai.
The deceased and the victims belonged to two families of Pudamari village in Ganjam district. Three of the victims were relatives of former Rajya Sabha members Renubala Pradha, who suspected that the accident took place as the driver dosed off while around 20 devotees, mostly women and children, were heading towards Tarini Temple in Ghatagaon from Digapahandi.
The ill-fated vehicle hit the truck parked on roadside around 3 km away from the temple, around 5 am. The front section of the van severely damaged and the bodies of the deceased were scattered along the road under the impact of the collision.
The deceased have been identified as Mita Pradhan, her son Akash, daughter-in-law Lili. Members of another family, who died, are Bayakhand Gauda, Madan Gauda, Mamina Gauda, Babina Gauda. Police are yet ascertain the name of another deceased member of the Gauda family.
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