Three policemen hurt as patrol van hit twice on Samruddhi Mahamarg near Karanja Lad

A police van on patrol on the Nagpur-Mumbai Samruddhi Mahamarg was hit by two vehicles on the night of Tuesday, November 3, injuring the three policemen in it. The accident took place near Channel No. 162, in the Akola Karanja Lad area. The injured were given first aid at the spot and then admitted to the Karanja sub-district hospital.

According to the available information, Jagdish Gharde (48), Alim Shaikh (29) and Tohim Shaikh (27) were patrolling the Nagpur corridor of the Samruddhi Mahamarg in police van number MH-12, ZC-5346, as part of their duty. Near Channel No. 162, the van was taking a U-turn when an unidentified vehicle rammed it hard.

The driver of the vehicle that hit the van did not stop and fled the spot. Meanwhile, another vehicle coming from behind also hit the police van. The van was thus struck twice, and all three policemen in it were injured in the double collision. The second hit came from the vehicle that arrived from behind after the first driver had fled.

On learning of the accident, a team of the Samruddhi Mahamarg 108 ambulance service reached the spot immediately. Ravi (Sonu) Shinde, the pilot of the ambulance stationed at IC-08, and Dr Ganesh gave the three injured first aid. They were then admitted to the Karanja sub-district hospital for further treatment.

All that is known about the vehicle that hit the van first is that it is unidentified and its driver fled. No more information has emerged about the second vehicle, which hit the van from behind.

As the accident happened during a police patrol itself, concern over safety arrangements on the expressway has risen once again. Questions are also being raised about monitoring of speeding vehicles.