LUCKNOW: AT least 15 people were killed and many others injured in two road accidents in Uttar Pradesh on Monday.Ten persons, including seven women and two children, died after a head-on collision between a truck and a tractor laden with people in Mirzapur district, about 285 km from state capital Lucknow. In Mathura district, five people died when their car collided with a bus late on Sunday night. The victims were going to attend a wedding ceremony in Naujheel area of Mathura district.
The Mirzapur tragedy occurred when a truck collided with a tractor carrying around 15 people, who were on their way back from a temple of Goddess Sheetla in Sheetla Dham in Chunar following a head tonsuring ceremony, district police sources said. The family travelling on the tractor belonged to village Gadhwa in Mirzapur.
Police sources said five persons died on the spot while the rest succumbed to their injuries on the way to a hospital. Six others who sustained injuries were admitted to the district hospital. Of them, five were said to be in critical condition and were taken to Varanasi for medical treatment, KK Singh, SHO Madihaan, told media persons.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, who had left for Gujarat on Monday morning to campaign there, expressed shock and grief over the tragedy and announced an ex gratia payment of `2 lakh to the dependents of those who lost their lives in the accident, and `25,000 for those who sustained injuries. The police have registered a case and ordered an investigation to ascertain the cause of the accident.