By BK Singh
Pratapgarh: In a tragic incident, four devotees returning from the Maha Kumbh lost their lives in a horrific car accident on the Prayagraj-Ayodhya National Highway near Rajgarh village in Pratapgarh district neighboring Prayagraj. The unfortunate event took place in the early hours of Wednesday morning when the vehicle they were traveling in lost control and rammed into a house.
According to the police, the passengers were on their way to Ayodhya to visit the revered Ram Temple after completing their holy dip at the Maha Kumbh in Prayagraj. The accident is believed to have occurred due to the vehicle being driven at high speed and the driver allegedly dozing off behind the wheel, causing him to lose control.
Authorities have identified the deceased as Raju Singh, a 25-year-old resident of Madora in Bihar; Abhishek Kumar, aged 24, from Chapra in Bihar; Saurabh, 26, from Raipur in Jharkhand; and the driver of the vehicle, Abhishek Ojha, who was 30 years old.
Eyewitnesses and residents recounted that the car was traveling at an excessive speed when it suddenly veered off the road and violently crashed into a nearby house. The force of the impact was so severe that a section of the house’s wall was destroyed, and the vehicle itself was left in a completely mangled state. The collision caused a loud noise, prompting people from the surrounding area to rush to the scene.
Despite the desperate attempts of the locals to rescue those trapped inside, the extent of the damage made it nearly impossible to extricate them immediately. The police were alerted and soon arrived at the accident site. It took them nearly an hour of dedicated efforts to extract the passengers from the wreckage.
After being rescued, the injured victims were promptly transported to the nearest hospital for emergency medical treatment. However, upon arrival, doctors pronounced four of them dead due to the severity of their injuries. Five additional people, including a couple who had been asleep inside the house at the time of the collision, sustained injuries in the accident. They were also rushed to a nearby medical facility for treatment and are currently undergoing care.
The police have taken custody of the deceased bodies and have sent them for post-mortem examination to ascertain further details. Investigations are ongoing to determine the exact sequence of events leading up to the accident.
This heartbreaking incident underscores the dangers of overspeeding and driver fatigue, highlighting the need for caution and alertness while traveling long distances. The loss of these young lives has cast a shadow of sorrow over their families and communities, who had embarked on a sacred journey only to meet an untimely fate.