+
 
For the best experience, open
m.thewire.in
on your mobile browser or Download our App.
You are reading an older article which was published on
Jan 19, 2021

Surat: Truck Kills 15 Migrant Workers Who Were Sleeping on a Footpath

The truck ran over the migrant construction workers on the Kim-Mandvi road shortly after midnight.
The truck after the accident. Photo: PTI

New Delhi: Fifteen migrant labourers from Rajasthan sleeping by the roadside in Gujarat’s Surat district died on Tuesday after a truck ran over them.

The tragedy took place near Kosamba village, around 60 km from Surat, police said. The truck driver, who apparently lost control over the vehicle after hitting a sugarcane laden tractor, has been detained.

The truck ran over the migrant construction workers on the Kim-Mandvi road shortly after midnight, Surat SP Usha Rada said. “The truck was on its way to Mandvi from Kim. The driver lost control of the vehicle after it hit sugarcane hanging out of the tractor trolley coming from the opposite direction. The truck’s front window pane shattered on impact, which blocked the driver’s vision. The truck then veered off the road and crashed into the sleeping labourers,” she said.

Three workers injured in the tragedy are being treated in a nearby hospital, the police official said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that ex-gratia of Rs two lakh from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund would be given to the next of kin of each person killed in the accident and Rs 50,000 would be given to each injured.

“The loss of lives due to a truck accident in Surat is tragic. My thoughts are with the bereaved families. Praying that the injured recover at the earliest,” the PMO tweeted, quoting Modi.

Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan’s office said in a tweet that he expressed deep condolences after the accident. “The Chief Minister prayed to God to give peace to the departed souls, to provide support to their family members in this difficult time and to make the injured fully healthy,” the tweet said.

(With PTI inputs)

Make a contribution to Independent Journalism
facebook twitter