Fatal accident on bypass leaves two dead, two injured in Amritsar
A road accident on Sunday claimed two lives near the Amritsar-Attari bypass road under the jurisdiction of the Verka police station in the district. The mishap occurred when a sand-laden tipper truck overturned onto three cars, crushing them under its weight and leaving others injured.
The incident triggered panic along the busy stretch as people rushed to rescue the victims. The accident also led to a massive traffic jam on the bypass road.
According to the police, two persons died in the mishap, while two others sustained injuries and were admitted to a nearby private hospital for treatment. The deceased were identified as Chandan Malhotra of Railway Mandi, Hoshiarpur, and Suresh Kumar, a resident of Bharat Nagar near the Nabha railway station in Patiala district.
Eyewitnesses said the tipper truck (PB02-EC-7695) was travelling from the Verka side towards the Celebration Resort when it suddenly mounted the footpath and lost balance. At the same time, three cars were passing alongside. Within moments, the heavily loaded vehicle toppled over, trapping the cars underneath and causing chaos at the scene. The truck driver fled immediately after the accident.
Local residents and commuters rushed to help the victims, stopping their vehicles and attempting to rescue those trapped inside the mangled cars. Police teams soon reached the spot and a crane was pressed into service to lift the overturned tipper. Varinder, who was travelling in a car (PB34-B-8578), and Chandan Malhotra, who was in another car (PB07-CA-7075), were pulled out from the wreckage. The injured, identified as Kuljit Singh and Shamsher Singh, were shifted to a private hospital.
The accident caused a traffic jam stretching nearly one kilometre along the bypass. Senior officials, including Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police Amandeep Kaur, reached the scene to supervise rescue and clearance operations. The damaged tipper, crushed vehicles and spilled sand were removed from the road, and traffic was restored after nearly one-and-a-half hours.
The police have initiated further investigation and launched a hunt to nab the absconding truck driver.
