Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: Two devotees on their way to Shirdi were crushed to death, and a truck driver lost his life after his vehicle overturned in a violent collision near Babargaon Phata on the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar-Gangapur Road on Saturday morning.
Victims Identified
The deceased have been identified as Mahadev Ghule (30) and Meera Pandav (25) from Jalna, along with truck driver Rajkumar Devendra Appa (46) from Karnataka.
Accident Details
The police stated that the accident occurred around 10am when Ghule and Pandav were riding a moped towards Shirdi for darshan, while a truck was heading in the opposite direction towards Karnataka. “In an attempt to avoid a collision, the truck driver swerved. However, the moped came under the rear wheels of the heavy vehicle,” officials said.
Ghule died on the spot, while Pandav sustained critical injuries. She was initially treated at the Gangapur sub-district hospital by Dr Pawan Mundada before being transferred to the Government Medical College and Hospital in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, where she succumbed during treatment.
Truck Driver Killed
The crash also caused the truck to overturn, trapping driver Appa inside the mangled cabin. Local residents and passersby attempted to rescue him. Despite being pulled out, he died shortly afterwards.
Ambulance personnel Shubham Waghmare and Sagar Shejul shifted the injured to the hospital. The accident triggered panic on the busy stretch, disrupting traffic for some time until the Gangapur police reached the spot, cleared the road, and conducted a panchanama.
Investigation Underway
Bodies of the deceased were sent for postmortem, and the police have initiated investigations to establish the exact sequence of events. “Further inquiries into the accident are underway,” the police said, adding that the driver’s body will be handed over to his family after they arrive from Karnataka.
