Bengaluru: Volvo crash that killed CEO and family sparks debate on road safety

A tragic highway accident close to Bengaluru on Saturday claimed the lives of six relations, igniting a debate concerning the effectiveness of protected vehicles on unsafe roads. The household was touring in a Volvo SUV when a container truck overturned, crushing the automobile and leaving no survivors.

The accident occurred on Nationwide Freeway 48 close to Nelamangala, on the outskirts of Bengaluru.

A preliminary police investigation has pieced collectively the occasions resulting in the tragic crash that claimed six lives. An Eicher truck, loaded with aluminum pillars weighing a number of tonnes, was headed to Bengaluru when the motive force misplaced management whereas attempting to keep away from a collision with one other automobile.

Touring at excessive velocity, the truck swerved, crossed the median, and overturned onto a Volvo automobile touring in the direction of Tumakuru. The influence was devastating, leaving the Volvo severely broken and inflicting the fatalities. The truck additionally struck a tempo earlier than stopping, however the tempo sustained solely minor injury.

A close-by CCTV digicam captured the horrifying second when the truck crushed the Volvo. Police are analyzing the footage as a part of their ongoing investigation into the incident.

The victims of the tragic accident have been recognized as Chandrayagappa Gaul (48), his spouse Gaurabai (42), and their family members Vijayalakshmi (36), John (16), Deeksha (12), and Arya (6). The household was touring to Vijayapura when the incident occurred.

Chandram Yegapagol, the CEO and managing director of IAST Software program Options, was a well known character in Bengaluru’s tech trade. A resident of HSR Format, he initially hailed from Morbagi village in Maharashtra’s Sangli district.

Yegapagol had a formidable academic background, holding a diploma in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from GPT Gulbarga, adopted by a Bachelor of Engineering in the identical discipline from the distinguished Nationwide Institute of Expertise Karnataka (NITK) Surathkal, in response to his LinkedIn profile.

Eyewitnesses reported that the truck driver, Arif, misplaced management of the automobile whereas making an attempt to keep away from a automobile that abruptly stopped in entrance of him. The truck then jumped the divider and collided with the Volvo SUV.

The household was touring to Vijayapura when the tragedy struck. In line with a police officer, the truck landed on the automobile, which was severely crushed, and the victims’ our bodies have been dismembered.

The accident has ignited a fierce debate on social media about highway security, with many customers emphasizing that even the most secure automobiles can not stop fatalities if different drivers are behaving recklessly.

DriveSmart, a social media account devoted to selling highway security, shared alarming photos from the accident web site the place a Volvo SUV was crushed by a container truck, ensuing within the deaths of six individuals.

The X deal with issued a stern warning, stating, “This pic is a reminder that being safer on the highway just isn’t achieved by a safer automobile alone. Protected Roads + Protected Driver + Protected Automobile –> All three are important for security (sic).”

In response to the publish, some customers identified that whereas Volvo is thought for producing protected automobiles, no automobile can stand up to the immense power of a container truck loaded with aluminum.

Others tagged Highway Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari, urging the federal government to implement stricter guidelines and laws to enhance highway security, stressing the necessity for stronger measures to stop such catastrophic accidents sooner or later.

Throughout a current highway security debate in Parliament, Union Minister Gadkari admitted that the variety of accidents has risen considerably. “Overlook about lowering the variety of accidents, I’ve no hesitation to confess that it has been elevated. That is one space the place our division has not achieved success,” Gadkari remarked in the course of the Winter session of Parliament.

He additionally expressed frustration over the dearth of worry of the regulation, regardless of the excessive variety of fatalities in highway accidents. “Some don’t put on helmets, some soar crimson sign,” he mentioned in the course of the Query Hour, describing the “unusual” scenario.

The union minister highlighted that improper parking of vans on roads is a big contributor to accidents, noting that many vans fail to comply with lane self-discipline.

Authorities knowledge reveals that over 1.78 lakh individuals misplaced their lives in highway accidents in India final 12 months, which averages to about 470 deaths day by day. A big proportion of the victims are within the 18-34 years age group.