Nine college students from Pune were killed after their Multi Utility Vehicle (MUV) collided with a truck on the Pune-Solapur highway in the early hours of Saturday morning.
According to the Loni Kalbhor police, the incident occurred at around 1 a.m. on Saturday near Kadamwak Vasti village on the highway. The police said that the nine students from Yavat in Pune were on their way home in a Ertiga after a trip to Raigad.
“The vehicle was being driven at a very high speed and lost control suddenly, as a result of which it crashed through the divider and collided head on with a truck in the opposite lane,” police inspector Suraj Bandgar, of Loni Kalbhor police station said.
The sound of the collision woke up the villagers who, along with some passing motorists, tried to help the occupants of the Ertiga. However, the vehicle was badly damaged and the police was informed. Several teams of policemen, along with ambulances and a Fire Brigade rescue team, reached the spot within the hour.
“The impact of the collision was very severe and all nine occupants in the car died on the spot. We moved their bodies to Sassoon Hospital in Pune,” Mr. Bandgar said.
Based on identification cards found on the deceased, along with documents in the vehicle, the police identified the nine victims, all aged between 21 and 25 years of age, and contacted their families. The bodies were handed over to the families late on Saturday evening after postmortem examination.
Meanwhile, the police registered a case after recording the statement of the truck driver, who escaped unhurt.
“We have posthumously booked the driver of the Ertiga for causing death due to rash and negligent driving under the Indian Penal Code along with relevant sections of the Motor Vehicles Act,” Mr. Bandgar said.
