Doomdooma/Nagaon, Oct 25: Six people, including a school principal, were killed and several others injured in two separate road accidents in Assam’s Tinsukia and Nagaon districts on Saturday.
In Doomdooma, four people lost their lives after a speeding vehicle carrying green tea leaves hit pedestrians and collided with a motorcycle and an SUV on the Samdang bypass near Doomdooma town in Tinsukia district on Saturday evening.
According to reports, the accident occurred near Samdang New Line under Doomdooma police station when a DI vehicle (AS 23 DC 5936), carrying green tea leaves, allegedly travelling at high speed, hit two pedestrians walking along the road before colliding with a motorcycle and an SUV.
The DI vehicle and the motorcycle caught fire following the collision, with eyewitnesses stating that flames engulfed both vehicles soon after the impact.
The driver of the DI vehicle was burnt to death inside the vehicle, while the motorcycle rider and one pedestrian died on the spot. The second pedestrian, who sustained critical injuries, later succumbed to his injuries while being taken to hospital.
The deceased were identified as Pintu Tanti, Subrata Bhakta and Ganesh Praja. The identity of the DI vehicle driver was yet to be established at the time of filing this report.
Firefighters rushed to the scene and worked to douse the flames, while the injured were taken to hospital. The exact number of injured persons could not be immediately confirmed.
School principal killed in Nagaon collision
In the second accident, Pradip Kumar Debnath, the in-charge principal of Dhing Khargeswar Bora Higher Secondary School, died on the spot following a head-on collision between an e-rickshaw and a fish-carrying van near Ganga Dhaba at Garoimari on the Nagaon-Dhing road at around 8.30 am. Three other passengers were injured in the collision.
Debnath, a resident of Chamuagaon village in Dhing town, had been living with his wife and only daughter in a rented house at Bhaganiachuk, Haibargaon, in Nagaon town.
As on a regular working day, he was travelling from Nagaon to Dhing in an e-rickshaw when the accident occurred. According to reports, the fish-carrying van, approaching from the opposite direction from the Dhing side, collided head-on with the three-wheeler.
The impact was severe, killing Debnath on the spot and injuring three other passengers travelling in the e-rickshaw. The drivers of both vehicles reportedly fled the scene following the collision.
Local residents alleged that the fish-carrying van was travelling at high speed when it hit the e-rickshaw.
On receiving information, police personnel from Batadraba and Juria police stations reached the spot, recovered the body and sent it to Nagaon Medical College Hospital for post-mortem examination. Both vehicles were seized, and an investigation was initiated.
Debnath was scheduled to retire from service on March 30 next year. His untimely death has cast a pall of gloom over Dhing, where several educational, social, literary and political organisations expressed condolences.
Among those mourning his death were Dhing Khargeswar Bora Higher Secondary School, the Nagaon District Employees Council, Dhing Branch Sahitya Sabha, Dhing Anchalik Students’ Union, Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuva Chhatra Parishad’s Dhing Anchalik Committee and Dhing Press Club. Dhing MLA Mehboob Muktar, former minister Gautam Bora and several other organisations and individuals also expressed grief.
Debnath is survived by his wife, daughter and other relatives.
Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma recently expressed concern over the rising number of road accidents across Assam, citing accident-prone stretches, road renovation work and unsafe driving practices as contributing factors.
“The accidents are surging, and we are concerned about it. In some places, the situation has improved, but in others, it remains a matter of concern, especially in areas where roads are being revamped. There are also accident-prone spots, and we are trying to correct them,” Sarma had told reporters.
The Chief Minister also stressed the need to improve road safety awareness.