CUDDALORE: Four persons, including three women, were killed and eight others sustained injuries when a mini-lorry packed with agricultural labourers rammed into a tractor tipper on the Chennai-Kumbakonam National Highway near Panruti in Cuddalore district on Sunday.
According to sources, the vehicle was carrying 12 labourers, including six women, from Vegakollai village in Kurinjipadi taluk, who were heading to Korathi after collecting casuarina branches for a sapling production centre.
The deceased were identified as S Rani (60), S Sathya (32), residents of Venkatapettai, G Gandhimathi (55) of Ayipettai and R Ravi (58) of Kurinjipadi. Eight others, who suffered severe injuries, are undergoing treatment at the Panruti Government Hospital.
The driver, M Chandrakumar (25) of Chathiram, was at the wheel when the vehicle rear-ended the tractor tipper laden with cashew wood logs near Pannikankuppam.
Mini-lorry driver dozing off may have led to collision
The tractor tipper, driven by N Murugavel (52) of Keelakuppam village, was on its way to Panruti to sell the logs, sources added.
Preliminary inquiry suggests that Chandrakumar may have dozed off and failed to notice the tractor tipper ahead of him, leading to the collision. Villagers and passersby rushed all the passengers to Panruti Government Hospital in 108 ambulances.
While four of them succumbed to injuries at the hospital, the remaining eight are undergoing treatment.
The Kadampuliyur police have registered a case against Chandrakumar and further investigation is under way.
The workers were part of a group, mobilised by a local middleman, who aggregates them from the same village every morning and ferries them to wherever work is available that day, sources added.