15 killed, 16 injured as truck ploughs into crowd in Andhra’s Chittoor

April 22, 2017

Hyderabad, Apr 22: At least 15 people were killed and about 16 injured on Friday when a truck driver lost control and hit an electric pole before ploughing the vehicle into a group of protesters, cars and shops at Yerpedu, about 25 km away from Tirupati in Chittoor district of Andhra Pradesh.

Drunk

While six persons were crushed to death under the truck’s wheels, others died of electrocution and the resultant fire, triggered by the mishap. Initially, about 20 people were feared dead.

The incident happened at around 1:45pm, when a large number of people had gathered in front of the Yerpedu police station located on the Putalapattu-Nayudupeta state highway to stage a dharna to demand action against illegal sand mining in the area.

Police said the truck with heavy load which was travelling at a high speed, lost control and hit an electric pole before crushing several people under its wheels. The truck came to a halt after destroying several vehicles and roadside shops, which were gutted in a fire that broke out in one of the shops due to impact of the accident.

A local reporter of a regional newspaper who was at the police station lost his legs in the accident. The driver and the cleaner absconded after the accident.

Renigunta deputy superintendent of police K S Nanjndappa said six people were crushed under the wheels of the truck, while the remaining 14 died of electric shock with high tension wires falling on them and fire in the shops. Following the accident, traffic movement on the Yerpedu, Srikalahasti, Renigunta and Tirupati routes was affected.

Some of the injured were shifted to Ruia hospital in Tirupati, while few others were moved to hospitals in Chennai and Vellore. The condition of 10 of the injured is said to be critical.

The Andhra Pradesh government announced an ex-gratia payment of Rs 5 lakh to the families of the deceased.

Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu expressed shock and grief at the loss of lives in the accident in Yerpedu. He directed the district Collector to personally supervise the relief operations.

Meanwhile, tense situation is prevailing near Ruia hospital as relatives of the victims are thronging the hospital and demanding action against the driver.

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April 5,2020

Nagpur, Apr 5: A 23-year-old man allegedly committed suicide in Imambada area in Nagpur on Saturday due to financial distress, police said.

Nikhil Gavhane, who worked in a grocery shop, hanged himself as he had taken money from a person and was stressed over repayment, an official said.

"He was depressed since a week," the Imambada police station official said.

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January 15,2020

New Delhi, Jan 15: The CBI has booked 17 individuals and companies, including three Mumbai-based senior Customs officials, for allegedly being part of a money laundering racket using over-invoiced import of diamonds worth more than Rs 156 crore, official said on Tuesday.

The case was referred to the CBI after a Directorate of Revenue Intelligence probe found alleged involvement of Customs officials in the conspiracy, they said.

The DRI probe had alleged that Hong Kong-based businessman Girish Kadel had imported rough diamonds from Switzerland to Hong Kong in the name of his four companies.

Kadel, who had business interests in India, had exported some of these diamonds to India through 14 consignments in the name of two companies Antique Exim Pvt Ltd and Tanman Jewels showing over-invoiced value of Rs 156.28 crore.

The DRI had found during revaluation that actual value of the consignment was Rs 1.03 crore instead of falsely declared value of Rs 156.28 crore, they said.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has alleged that Kadel used Import Export Codes (IECs) of Antique Exim Private Ltd and Tanman Jewels through his aide Atul Paldecha for siphoning off the money outside India through import of over-valued diamonds, the officials said.

Rough diamonds were imported at "highly exaggerated value" to siphon off excess foreign exchange overseas to cover the differential cost of other imports and park money abroad for unlawful activities.

It is alleged that the then Commissioner APSC Mumbai, Vinay Brij Singh, influenced subordinate officers to give favourable report, they said.

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July 19,2020

New Delhi, Jul 19: At least six people were killed and 20 injured when a bus overturned after colliding with a private vehicle at Agra - Lucknow Expressway in the wee hours of Sunday. According to initial reports, the bus carrying around 40 passengers toppled after hitting a stranded SUV at around 5 am, 122 km from Lucknow.

A police team reached the spot within a few minutes of the accident and rescued the injured with the help of locals. They were rushed to a nearby hospital. “Five passengers were killed on the spot while another died minutes after reaching the hospital,” Hindustan Times quoted Kannauj DSP Amarendra PD Singh as saying.

Around 20 other passengers have also sustained injuries who were admitted to the hospital, the police said. The bus had started from Bihar's Darbhanga and was en route to Delhi. "The private bus was coming from Darbangha and going to Delhi when it hit a car. Both the vehicles came down from the highway," a senior police official told news agency ANI.

Meanwhile, authorities are trying to ascertain the identity of the deceased. UP CM Yogi Adityanath expressed over the loss of lives and directed officials to ensure all help to the victims.

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