CHENNAI: A 42-year-old woman, a Sri Lankan Tamil refugee, and her 69-year-old mother were killed after their two-wheeler rammed into a parked lorry near Gummidipoondi in Tiruvallur district on Saturday afternoon. The woman’s four-year-old daughter survived the crash.
The SIPCOT police said the accident occurred on Kolkata-Chennai National Highway near Verkadu on Saturday afternoon when Jayaprasanthini, a resident of Sri Lankan Tamil Rehabilitation Camp in Gummidipoondi, was riding to Janapachatram to deliver food to her ailing father, admitted at a private hospital near Red Hills for lung issues.
Her mother, Rajakumari, was riding pillion with Jayaprasathini’s four-year-old daughter seated between the two.
The police said the two-wheeler crashed into the rear side of the lorry parked on the roadside when Jayaprasanthini took a turn. All three were thrown off the bike in the impact and were later taken to the Ponneri Government Hospital where Jayaprasanthini and Rajakumari were declared dead on arrival. The bodies were sent for autopsy, the police said. The four-year-old is being treated for minor injuries.
The family had been staying at the refugee camp since 2000. Jayaprasathini, who was running a small tailoring shop at Gummidipoondi and had been teaching aari embroidery. She is survived by her husband Rajesh (42) who installs CCTVs in Tiruvallur and their older son, 12-year-old Thaswin.
The police have registered a case against the lorry driver under sections related to negligence, as he had parked the vehicle in an “illegal” spot. The driver is yet to be arrested.
As per section 122 of The Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, vehicles or trailers are not to remain at rest on any public place in a way that causes or likely to cause danger, obstruction or undue inconvenience to other users.
Meanwhile, on Friday night near Singaperumal Koil, within the Mahindra City area, an electricity board employee was killed on the spot after being hit by a tanker lorry while attempting to cross the road.
The deceased, identified as Kesavan (55), hailed from Perambakkam area near Cheyyur in Chengalpattu district. He was employed at the Vandalur Electricity Board office. On Friday night, after finishing his work shift, Kesavan went to visit a friend residing in Bhagat Singh Nagar, Singaperumal Koil.
Subsequently, around 9.15 pm, he attempted to cross the GST Road near Mahindra City when a petrol-laden tanker lorry travelling at high speed from Chennai towards Trichy ran him over. He died at the spot.
Upon receiving information, the Tambaram Traffic Investigation Wing police rushed to the spot, recovered Kesavan’s body, and sent it to the Chengalpattu Government Hospital for postmortem.
Based on a complaint, the Tambaram Traffic Investigation Wing police have registered a case under sections related to negligence and arrested the lorry driver, Karunakaran (55), from Thiruverumbur in Trichy district, and are conducting further investigation.