Separate road accidents kill 12

Separate incidents of road accident claimed the lives of twelve on Monday. An intoxicated driver 

smashed seven persons to death while driving a car at South 24 Parganas Thakurpukur on Monday afternoon. In another incident, a car rammed on a roadside pillar and caused the death of five persons at Manbazar in Purulia. They were returning from Gangasagar.

In Thakurpukur, six students including four girls and two boys, along with a guardian died on the spot at Rasapunja crossing on Monday afternoon. They were returning home from school. The students were all between 12 to 14-years old and the guardian was a middle aged woman, police said.

“The car, after filling up fuel from a local petrol pump, accelerated towards the main road. The children were walking down the road along with a woman. The woman was guiding the students towards their homes. The car smashed them there and hit a wall. We suspect the driver was intoxicated. His friends were also drinking inside the car. The driver and his friend were also injured in the accident. They were admitted at a local hospital in critical condition,” said a police officer.

The local residents and policemen took those bodies to the hospital after which those bodies were sent for post mortem. Police have started an investigation. “The driver was a resident of North 24 Paraganas Bongaon. He came here with some of his friends riding the private car,” police said.

The angry local residents started demonstrating at the spot. They alleged that the car was running at a high speed. “The car was running at 90-100 km per hour. They were holding liquor bottles in their hand,” an eye witness said. “It was at round 4:28 pm when the incident took place. Local people started to pelt stones at policemen. They even blocked the road there. Police resorted to a lathi-charge to disperse the unlawful gathering of a large number of people there.

In Manbazar, the car which was carrying the pilgrims, rammed at a pillar. The driver of the car was drunk, police suspect. Five persons, including some women died in the accident. All of them were residents of Purulia, police added.