1 dies, 3 injured as SUV rams pick-up truck

NEW DELHI: A 29-year-old man died while three others were critically injured when a speeding SUV lost control and crashed into a pick-up truck after crossing the divider at the Ring Road near Lajpat Nagar on Sunday morning.DCP (southeast) Chinmoy Biswal said that the deceased, Dharmender, was driving the Tata Safari SUV and was accompanied by his friends Praveen Singhal and Kapil Panwar. All three are residents of Devli in southeast Delhi. A case of dangerous driving, causing death due to negligence and causing grievous hurt has been registered for further investigation.A preliminary probe found that the accident happened at 3.50am. The SUV was coming from the Ashram side at a high speed. Police officers said that the SUV suddenly lost control due to the high speed and crashed into the divider. It then moved on the opposite side of the Ring Road and continued to move towards oncoming traffic.A pick-up truck was coming from South Extension on the carriageway and crashed head on with the speeding SUV. Both the vehicles were extensively damaged, with the occupants trapped inside. Passersby noticed the collision and informed the police and ambulance services. The driver of the pick-up truck, Hukum Dev Yadav, along with the three occupants of the SUV, was taken to AIIMS Trauma Center where doctors declared that Dharmender was brought dead.The other three injured are yet to gain consciousness and remain in a critical condition. CCTV footage of the area is being scanned to ascertain the exact sequence of events that led to the accident.Cops have sent the blood samples of the SUV driver for examination to probe if he was under the influence of any intoxicants that may have led to him lose control of the vehicle. Family members of the deceased have been informed about the accident and the body will be handed over to them after autopsy.