Lucknow, Aug 10 (PTI) Five devotees were killed and a total of 41 people injured in separate road accidents involving pilgrims and Kanwariyas in Uttar Pradesh on Monday, police said.
The accidents were reported from Kaushambi, where one person was killed and 30 were injured; Barabanki, where two devotees were killed and one was injured; Kasganj, where two Kanwariyas were killed and one was injured; Pratapgarh, where six Kanwariyas were injured; and Maharajganj, where three devotees were injured, police said.
The highest number of casualties was reported from Kaushambi, where a pilgrim was killed and 30 others, including the driver, were injured after a pickup vehicle carrying 36 devotees overturned on National Highway-19. The accident occurred near Kasia village when the pilgrims from Nizampur Puraini were travelling to Maa Sheetla Dham in Kada for a holy dip and darshan, police said.
Superintendent of Police Satyanarayan Prajapat said the driver was attempting to overtake a bus when he lost control of the overloaded vehicle that was travelling at high speed and it overturned. Ram Sharan (18), a resident of Nizampur Puraini, died on the spot. Six seriously-injured pilgrims were referred to the SRN Hospital in Prayagraj. District Magistrate Amit Pal, Prajapat and Chief Medical Officer Sanjay Prasad visited the district hospital.
In Barabanki, two devotees were killed and another was seriously injured after a tractor-trolley collided with their motorcycle near Dadanpur village on Sunday night. The three victims — Shaktiman Joshi (19), Shailendra alias Hemal Joshi (22) and Sachin Joshi (21) — were travelling to the Lodheswar Mahadeva temple to offer water on the second Monday of Shravan.
Police said Shaktiman Joshi and Shailendra Joshi later succumbed to their injuries, while Sachin Joshi is undergoing treatment. Fatehpur Kotwali in-charge Amit Singh Bhadauria said relatives had alleged a delay of around an hour and a half for an ambulance to arrive, following which he arranged a government vehicle to shift Shaktiman Joshi to the district hospital.
In Kasganj, two Kanwariyas were killed and another was seriously injured when their motorcycle collided with a car near the Kali River bridge, Superintendent of Police O P Singh said. The three were part of a group of around 30 Kanwariyas from Agra travelling to Soron to collect Gangajal.
Doctors declared Harigovind (26) and Rahul (18) dead, while Vivek was referred to a higher medical centre in Agra.
In Pratapgarh, six Kanwariyas were seriously injured after their pickup vehicle overturned near the Natraj petrol pump in Dabhiar under Lalganj Kotwali, police said. Additional Superintendent of Police (West) Brijnandan Rai said the Kanwariyas were returning after offering Ganga water at Ghuisarnath Dham. The injured were identified as Shani Bharti (20), Himanshu (22), Shivam (19), Nirmala Sahu (18), Pawan (26) and Anil (26).
Bharti, Himanshu and Shivam were referred to a medical college.
In Maharajganj, three devotees were injured after a tractor-trolley carrying around 35 people fell into a roadside canal near Padri Kala village. The devotees from Pipariya Guru Govind Rai village were returning from the Itahiya Shiva temple after offering prayers on the second Monday of Shravan when the driver lost control of the vehicle, police said.
Locals helped rescue the passengers, including women and children, and the injured were taken to the Jagdaur Hospital. Doctors said all three were stable and out of danger. PTI COR ABN KIS RC
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