14 killed in truck-van collision in Karnataka

Fourteen persons, including seven women, were killed and nearly 20 injured on Saturday when a truck collided with a Tempo Traveller in Karnataka's Chitradurga district, police said.

"The mishap occurred around 11.30 a.m. at Rampura when the truck driver lost control and rammed into the tempo after hitting two auto-rickshaws on State Highway 110," Rampura Inspector Sridar Shastri told IANS.

Police said the victims were construction workers on way to their native place from Bengaluru.

Rampura is about 80 km from Chitradurga and 260 km from state capital Bengaluru towards Bellari in the state's northwest region.

"The husk-laden truck was on way to Bengaluru from Bellari via Chitradurga while the tempo was going to Molkalkur. The truck driver fled the spot," Shastri said.

A case has been registered against the absconding driver and truck owner under Section 304-A of the Indian Penal Code and the vehicle seized.

Earlier, Chitradurga District Superintendent of Police M. Arun Rangarajan told IANS that 11 of the victims died on the spot. The three others succumbed to serious injuries in a state-run hospital at Bellari.

"The injured have been rushed to the Vijayanagara Institute of Medical Sciences at Bellari," said Rangarajan.

--IANS

fb/tsbbg