VIJAYAPURA : In a tragic road accident, six people died, including a family of four who were returning from a pilgrimage, when their SUV collided with a VRL bus in the early hours of Wednesday. Only a 10-year-old boy survived the crash, now left orphaned by the tragedy.
The accident took place near Managuli village on the Vijayapura-Chitradurga NH-50 in the early morning hours. The deceased have been identified as T Bhaskar (36), a Canara Bank manager, his wife T Pavitra (34), elder son Abhirama (14) and daughter Jotpa (12).
All the five people are residents of Mebhoob Nagar in Telangana. Vikas Makani (30), the driver of the Mahindra TUV-300, a local resident of Horti, Vijayapura and Basavaral Lamani, the bus driver (48) of Gopalakoppa village in Dharwad, also died in the accident. The sole survivor from the family, Praveen Teja (10) is receiving treatment for serious injuries and is reportedly out of danger, according to sources. Bhaskar was recently transferred to another Canara Bank branch, but he was yet to assume charge and had planned a family pilgrimage before joining his new posting.
The Managuli police said that the accident occurred around 6.20 am when the family was returning to Vijayapura after visiting Dharmasthala and Murudeshwar. It is suspected that the SUV driver, Vikas, may have dozed off at the wheel. The vehicle veered off course, crashed into the road divider, jumped onto the opposite lane and collided.
The bus driver, in an attempt to avoid a worse disaster, lost control and rammed into a stationary container truck. He too succumbed to injuries. The bus passenger, Balasaheb Kanase (49) from Pune was also injured in the crash and is undergoing treatment. The incident was registered at Managuli police station with PSI Srikanth Kamble leading the investigation.