2 dead, 2 hurt as car hits tractor in Anuppur

Two persons were killed and two others seriously injured after a speeding car rammed into a diesel-laden tractor-trolley on NH-43 in Anuppur district on Thursday night, police said. The accident occurred around 8.30 pm near Nigwani Tiraaha under Kotma police station limits when the car, returning from Shahdol towards Rajnagar, crashed into a tractor-trolley moving ahead. The impact was so severe that the car was completely mangled, while the tractor-trolley veered off the road into a nearby field. Police identified the deceased as Pyare Sharma (45), who was driving the car, and Geeta Panika (44), both residents of Rajnagar. Two other occupants — Meena Dewangan (33) of Manendragarh and Harishankar Chaturvedi (62) — sustained critical injuries and were initially taken to Kotma Hospital before being referred to the district hospital. Following the crash, traffic was disrupted for some time. TNN