HANUMANGARH, Abohar, July 9— Four people were killed and 17 others sustained injuries after a Rajasthan Roadways bus rammed into a stationary dumper truck on the Hanumangarh-Chandigarh mega highway early Tuesday morning.
The crash occurred around 8:30 a.m. near Nagrana village, when the bus, en route from Hanumangarh to Chandigarh, struck the rear of a gravel-laden dumper that was reportedly parked along the roadside. Authorities said the bus was attempting to overtake another vehicle when the collision took place.
“The bus tried to overtake a vehicle ahead and hit the dumper from behind. The impact was massive,” said Amar Singh, in-charge of the Sangria police station. “We’re investigating the exact circumstances.”
Among the deceased were Rajveer (52), a native of Madhya Pradesh; Prithvi Raj (52), from Hanumangarh; bus conductor Ravinder Singh (50), from Sriganganagar; and Vinod Tanwar (65), a resident of Mirzewala in the same district.
The injured, a mix of passengers and crew, included Gentleman Singh, Amar Dass, Dharampal Matoria, Aarti Bawri, Gulshan Bawri, Surjit Singh Kamboj, Rajinder Odh along with his wife Sanju Rani and son Rehan, Ravi Odh, bus driver Kuldeep Odh, Nishant Soni, Rekha Tomar, Kulwinder Kaur, and Gurpreet Singh. They were taken to the local government hospital for treatment.
Witnesses and villagers rushed to the site to assist in rescue efforts before emergency responders arrived. Police officials, including Superintendent of Police Hari Shankar and Deputy Superintendent Karan Singh, later reached the scene to oversee operations and ensure the injured were evacuated swiftly.
Following post-mortem examinations, the bodies were handed over to the respective families. Police have registered a case of negligent parking against the dumper truck driver, based on a complaint from the kin of one of the victims.
“The truck was parked without proper warning or reflectors. This is sheer negligence and it cost lives,” said one grieving relative outside the mortuary.
Traffic movement on the highway remained disrupted for several hours but was restored later in the day after authorities removed the damaged vehicles.
