Patna, June 24 (IANS) In a tragic road accident near Beda Canal in Bihar’s Rohtas district on Tuesday, two persons lost their lives on the spot when a speeding dumper collided head-on with an auto-rickshaw.

The deceased have been identified as Santosh Kumar (17), son of forest worker Indradev Singh, and Bhola Paswan (45), a farmer from Morsarai village.

Two other passengers sustained serious injuries and are currently undergoing treatment at Sasaram Sadar Hospital.

According to eyewitnesses, the auto-rickshaw was en route to Sasaram when a dumper, speeding from the opposite direction, rammed into it around 5 a.m. The impact was so intense that the auto was completely mangled, leading to the instant deaths of Santosh and Bhola.

After the horrific fatal accident, the errant driver fled from the scene before local villagers assembled there.

Following the incident, angry villagers staged a protest, blocking the old GT Road and demanding compensation for the bereaved families and strict action against the dumper driver.

The roadblock led to a 2-3 hour traffic jam, causing long queues of vehicles on both sides of the highway.

Senior police officials, including Sadar DSP Dilip Kumar and personnel from the Town Police Station, rushed to the scene.

The police sent the dead bodies for post-mortem and initiated an investigation. Authorities managed to pacify the protesters and restore traffic flow.

“The errant dumper driver fled the scene. We are making efforts to arrest him. A case under rash and negligent driving has been registered in the Town Police Station of the district,” said DSP Dilip Kumar, confirming that the situation is now under control.

“We are scanning the CCTV cameras to identify the vehicle and its driver. The errant driver will be put behind bars soon,” the DSP said.

The incident has once again raised concerns about reckless driving by heavy vehicles on state highways, prompting demands for stricter traffic enforcement and monitoring.

–IANS

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