Eight engineering students from TN die in Keralam highway crash

Eight engineering students from Tamil Nadu’s Dindigul were killed when their car rammed into a lorry allegedly parked illegally on NH-66 in Thrissur district of central Keralam, the police said on Saturday, 5 September.

The accident occurred at around 11.40 pm on Friday when the car, travelling from Guruvayur towards Kodungallur, collided with the rear of the Maharashtra-registered lorry, police said.

According to the FIR, the lorry was parked illegally on the right side of the highway near a barricaded stretch where traffic had been diverted as part of ongoing construction work. Police said the car was travelling at high speed and its driver apparently failed to notice the diversion before the collision.

Six students died on the spot, while two others were declared dead on arrival at a nearby hospital, police said.

Police have identified six of the deceased. Four of them — Surya, Yuvasanjith, Vishva and Johua — were from Dindigul, while Santhosh and Prasanna were from Madurai. The identities of the other two are yet to be confirmed.

Police contacted the families of the deceased using identity cards recovered from the victims. Some of the families were unaware that their children had travelled to Keralam, police said.

State sports minister O.J. Janeesh, who represents Kodungalloor, alleged that the National Highways Authority of India had been uncooperative whenever public representatives convened meetings or raised concerns over construction work on NH-66.

He pointed to inadequate lighting on the highway and alleged shortcomings in the placement of signboards and speed-control measures at locations where construction work was underway.

Janeesh said the NHAI must examine whether failures in maintaining warning systems during construction contributed to the accident.

The NHAI is yet to respond to the allegations.

Thrissur rural district police chief Mohammad Nadeemuddin said a preliminary investigation indicated that the accident occurred due to the lorry driver's fault.

“It is definitely a mistake on the part of the lorry driver. An FIR has already been registered. We will also look into the role of the highway authorities and the contractor as part of the investigation,” he told reporters.

Nadeemuddin said the lorry driver was absconding, but the vehicle owner had been identified, and the accused would be caught soon. He said a highway police patrol unit had been deployed in the area, lorry drivers often parked their vehicles and left the spot.