Pongal revelry turns tragic: 8 students killed in road mishap

Eight polytechnic students, on a Pongal festival holiday tour, were killed and another was injured when their jam-packed car rammed into a roadside tree near here today, police said.
The nine, students of MIT Polytechnic in Salem, were proceeding to a temple at C N Palayam village in the car to witness the Pongal celebration there when the mishap occurred at Vanamadevi near Nellikuppam, about 30 km from here, police said.
District Superintendent of Police C Vijayakumar and DSP Ramamurthy visited the spot.
The DSP said police suspected the students were drunk at the time of the ghastly mishap which killed all the eight on the spot and left the car totally mangled.

One of the students Selvam, who was driving, lost control resulting in the car crashing into a roadside tamarind tree, they said.
Police also said the car could accommodate only a maximum of five passengers and was overloaded.
The injured student had been admitted to a government hospital here, he said.
Three of the students hailed from Cuddalore and had invited their friends home to celebrate Pongal.