Eleven die as truck rams into auto in Samastipur

SAMASTIPUR/PATNA: At least eleven persons, including three of a family, died while two others were injured after a speeding truck rammed into an autorickshaw near Bishambharpur Eloth village on state highway (SH) 103 under the Musrigharari police station area in

Samastipur

district on Sunday. The deceased included five women, four men and two children. They could not be identified till late evening.

Samastipur SP Deepak Ranjan said nine passengers of the autorickshaw were declared brought dead while one died during treatment at the district sadar hospital.

One among the injured died on way to the

Patna Medical College and Hospital

(PMCH). “His body was brought back to sadar hospital,” Samastipur circle officer (CO) Samir Kumar Saran said and added that a woman, her daughter and grandson were among the deceased persons.

Chief minister Nitish Kumar expressed grief and announced Rs4 lakh ex gratia payment to the next of kin of each of the deceased. He also directed the Samastipur district administration for proper treatment of the injured.

Police sources said the state highway connecting Samastipur to Patna is single lane at the accident site. They said the overloaded three-wheeler was returning to Musrigharari from Samastipur town while the truck was coming from the opposite direction.

“Altogether 13 persons, including the driver were travelling in the autorickshaw. The auto driver also died in the accident while the truck driver managed to escape,” police said. Both the vehicles were seized.

This is the fifth major accident in the state in the last 20 days. Till Sunday, 42 people have lost their lives, including 14 in Patna and 17 in

Muzaffarpur

, in the five major accidents.