Ramnagar: An accident took place near Garjia Mata temple on Thursday morning. A speeding car hit a tempo full of students going from Sundarkhal village of Ramnagar to Government Inter College (GIC) located in Dhikuli. The collision was so severe that the driver and an elderly passenger along with 8 school children travelling in the tempo were injured. After the accident, the local people immediately took all the injured to Ramdatt Joint Hospital in Ramnagar. After first aid, two children have been referred to a higher center due to their critical condition.
Wagon R car running on the wrong side hit the tempo: According to eyewitnesses, this accident happened when the tempo driver was going from Sundarkhal to GIC Inter College in Dhikuli with the children. Then a Wagon R car coming at high speed from the opposite direction near Garjia temple hit the tempo from the wrong side. The collision was so strong that the tempo went into the dirt road on the side of the road and the children riding in it got jolted and fell here and there.
The injured children told about the accident: The injured children told that-
We were going to school like everyday. Then suddenly a car hit our vehicle from the front. The car was coming very fast and was going on the wrong side. Before we could understand anything, we got jolted and got injured.
-Children riding the tempo-
This is what the tempo driver said: Tempo driver Naveen Singh Adhikari, who is a resident of Ramnagar, told that-
We regularly bring children from Sundarkhal village to school. The people riding the Wagon R were in a drunken state. When I saw that the car was coming from the front in the wrong direction, I turned the tempo into the dirt road, but the car also collided with the dirt road. After this, the people riding the car came out and started fighting.
-Naveen Singh Adhikari, Tempo driver-
10 people including 8 students injured in the accident: Local people reached the spot as soon as they got information about the incident. Immediately helped in taking all the injured to the hospital. Dr. Deepa, senior doctor of Ramdutt Joint Hospital, said that-
A total of 10 people have been injured in the accident. These include eight school children, a tempo driver and an elderly passenger. All have been given first aid. Two children have been referred to a higher center as their condition is critical.
-Dr. Deepa, senior doctor, Ramdutt Joint Hospital-
Car driver in custody: After the accident, the police also reached the spot and started investigation. At present, the process of medical examination is being done to identify the Wagon R riders and confirm intoxication. The driver has been taken into custody. Local people have demanded from the administration that the safety of vehicles running on school routes should be ensured. Strict action should be taken against wrong side driving and drunk driving.
People in the car were going to cast their vote: It is being told that people in the Wagon R car were going from Delhi to the hills to vote. Voting for the three-tier Panchayat elections is going on in many areas of Kumaon and Garhwal today.
