Seven killed, over 30 injured in seperate crashes across CG

Raipur: The beginning of the week turned deadly on Chhattisgarh's roads, with seven people killed and more than 30 injured in separate accidents across Korba and Bilaspur districts, many of them linked to late-night travel and wedding-related movement. The worst crash was reported from Korba, where three members of a family — a woman, her son and her two-and-a-half-year-old grandson — died after their speeding car lost control near a toll on the Champa-Farswani road late on Monday. Police said the Soni family from Budhwari in Korba was returning from a ceremony in Champa around 2am when the car hit a divider, overturned and rammed into a roadside truck. The impact mangled the vehicle, killing Mongra Soni (45), her son Devendra Soni (22), and grandson Priyansh on the spot. Other injured family members are undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Champa. In Bilaspur, four more people died in separate crashes. Near Lalkhadan overbridge in Torwa, a car driven by Tikendra Prasad Patel (29), a doctor posted in the surgery department of CIMS Medical College, allegedly hit an auto after he dozed off while returning from Mahasamund to Bilaspur. The crash killed Biras Bai Dahariya (50), a labourer from Dhangawan in Masturi. The auto driver suffered fractures in both legs, while three others were seriously injured. Another wedding group met with tragedy near Nagchui village in Takhatpur when a Scorpio carrying ‘baraatis' from Kota overturned while the driver tried to avoid a cyclist. The vehicle rolled three to four times, killing Sushila Manikpuri of Ghoramar and injuring 13 others. Police said preliminary inquiry suggests the Scorpio was overloaded. In Sipat, a pickup carrying more than 25 wedding guests overturned near Karma Basaha turn while on their way to Umariya Dadar. Ram Jhool Singh (40) died on the spot and 12 others were injured. The fifth accident was reported from Masturi, where Gautam Yadav (24) of Sipat Nayapara was killed after a speeding car hit his motorcycle.