Nelamangala Accident: Tried to Avoid Hitting Car in Front, Lost Control, Claims Truck Driver

Bengaluru: The driver of the truck involved in the accident in Nelamangala which killed six people, on Monday claimed that there was a car ahead of his vehicle, and in a bid to avoid collision, he swerved towards the road divider, which led to the accident.

Chandram Yegapagol (48), the managing director of IAST Software Solutions was travelling with his family to Vijayapura in his Volvo car when the tragedy occurred at Nelamangala on the Bengaluru outskirts on Saturday.

The container truck carrying 26 tonnes of steel from Jindal Steel and Power was en route to Bengaluru.

According to eye-witnesses, the front wheel of the container truck climbed up the road divider after hitting it and the vehicle overturned.

The techie’s family was crushed inside the car.

The dismembered bodies of six people, including two children, were brought out from the badly mangled car with the help of a crane. The police employed gas cutters to cut open the flattened car and extract the bodies.

Yegapagol belonged to village Morbagi in Jath Taluk of Sangli district in Maharashtra where the last rites were performed on Sunday.

Speaking to reporters, the Jharkhand-based truck driver, Arif, who was hospitalised with injuries sustained in the mishap, said he was moving at a speed of 40 km ph.

He blamed a blue coloured car for the accident.

"The driver of the blue colour car applied sudden brakes and I lost control of my vehicle. To save the car, I turned the steering wheels towards the road divider on the right. But then I saw another car and steered left again. Due to this, the steel laden container fell," Arif said.

Police, however, refused to comment on his statement, saying that the matter is still under investigation and sharing any information would hamper their probe.

They also said that the truck driver was unaware that an SUV got crushed beneath his vehicle and that it led to the death of six of the family. According to a senior police officer, a Deputy Superintendent of Police rank officer is investigating the case and a detailed investigation is being carried out to ascertain the cause of the accident.

The CCTV cameras installed in and around the area of the accident site are also being verified as part of the probe.

"A DYSP rank officer is investigating the case. We are also doing a case study, keeping in mind the road safety aspects as well. At this stage, we do not want to reveal any details which would further hamper the probe," a senior police officer said. 

With PTI Inputs