In a gruesome accident involving a jeep and a lorry, eight people were killed while seven others sustained grievous injuries, near Marinayakanahalli on Chintamani-Madanapalli road on Sunday.
According to the police, deceased are Narayanaswamy (55) of Sonnashettahalli, Munirathnamma (49) of Gounipalli, Venkatalaxmamma (45), a native of Marinayakanahalli and Ramesh (49), the jeep driver, Munikrishna and Nikhil, all natives of Chintamani town and Rajappa and Monica couple from Bengaluru.
The jeep that was carrying excess passengers was plying between Taadihal Cross and Chintamani while the cement-laden lorry was on its way to Madanpalli in Andhra Pradesh. The impact of the crash has turned the jeep into a mangled heap of metal. Bodies were strewn all over the collision site.
Locals rushed the injured to the Chintamani government hospital. The toll may go up as the condition of some of the injured is said to be critical.
The accident has put the spotlight on the menace of overloading of passenger vehicles in the villages and towns bordering Andhra Pradesh. In Taadigol Cross, Gounipalli and Srinivaspur jeeps and other transport vehicles operate without authorised licence. The locals expressed their anguish against the inaction of the police and the RTO officials on the menace.
Legislators M Krishnareddy, K R Rameshkumar, K Y Nanjegowda among others visited the accident spot and instructed the officials to conduct a thorough probe.
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