Three killed, several injured in separate road accidents

Raipur: Three separate road accidents in Chhattisgarh on Friday left three people dead and several others injured. A bus conductor died and 12 passengers were injured in a Surajpur bus-truck collision, and two labourers were killed with three others seriously injured in a highway crash in Kondagaon district. In Raigarh district's Bhupdevpur police station limits, a 33-year-old anganwadi worker died on the spot after a speeding trailer hit the scooter on which she was travelling with her husband and child.The death triggered protests, with angry villagers blocking the road and demanding compensation. The blockade led to long queues of vehicles on both sides of the road. The victim, identified as Uma Rathia, a resident of Tundri Rampur village, was on her way to her maternal home in Singhanpur when the accident took place.Police said the trailer allegedly rammed the scooter from behind. Uma came under the wheels of the heavy vehicle and died instantly, while her husband and child were thrown aside and suffered minor injuries. The trailer driver fled the spot after the accident.Police reached the spot soon after receiving information and efforts were made to persuade the protesters. He said a search is on for the absconding driver and further investigation is underway.In another accident in Surajpur district, a bus collided with a truck parked on the roadside in the Latori outpost area's Kalyanpur Navapara, leaving the conductor dead and 12 passengers injured, four of them seriously.According to injured passengers, the crash occurred in the early hours when most of them were asleep. The bus, travelling from Bihar to Ambikapur, reportedly hit the stationary truck at high speed, causing passengers to be tossed from their seats. All injured were rushed to Ambikapur medical college hospital for treatment.The bus conductor, identified as Kishore, later died during treatment in Ambikapur. His family has been informed. Officials said three injured passengers are undergoing treatment in hospital, including three admitted to the intensive care unit, while five with minor injuries were discharged after first aid.A third accident was reported on national highway-30 in Kondagaon district, where a collision between a truck and a vehicle killed two labourers on the spot and left three others seriously injured.The injured were admitted to the community health centre in Farasgaon, where their condition was stated to be critical. Police said several labourers were trapped inside the vehicle after the collision and had to be pulled out with difficulty. The bodies of the deceased were also retrieved after hours of effort with the help of local residents and police personnel.