• Source:JND
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At least seven women were killed and 13 others were injured in an accident in this district on Monday when a stationary van crushed them after being hit from the rear by a lorry on the Chennai-Bengaluru Highway (NH 44).

Expressing heartfelt condolences and sympathies to the bereaved families, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin announced an ex-gratia of Rs one lakh to each of the affected families.

Also, Rs 50,000 will be paid through the Chief Minister's Public Relief Fund to the injured undergoing treatment, he said in a statement. According to police, the victims were seated on the roadside when the accident happened, they said. Also, all the injured in the mishap involving the two vehicles were admitted to local government hospitals.

The deceased have been identified as Meera, Deivanai, Sithammal alias Selvi, Devaki, Savithri, Kalavathi and Geethanjali, said police.

According to a senior police official, the victims were part of a group from Onanguttai village, near Ambur in Vellore district, who had embarked on a trip to Dharmasala in Karnataka on September 8.

While they were returning home in two vans, the tyre of one of the vehicles burst stranding the passengers at Natrampalli on the Bengaluru-Chennai national highway.
"The van driver was attending to the repair work after asking the tourists to disembark. Suddenly, a speeding lorry coming from Bengaluru hit the van from behind, and due to the impact the van overturned crushing seven women," he said.

Ten others who had travelled in the ill-fated van and three persons from the lorry have been admitted to the Tirupathur and Vaniyambadi government hospitals. The Natrampalli police have registered a case and an investigation is underway.

(With Agency Inputs)