It was along NH1 at Jandiala near Amritsar in Punjab that a speeding Toyota Fortuner rammed into a Mahindra XUV500 following an overtaking manoeuvre gone wrong. CCTV footage reveals that the driver of the Fortuner was overtaking a bus from the wrong side.
But on the lane in which the Fortuner driver was overtaking the bus, was a slow moving vehicle and some people walking. In order to avoid a collision with the slow moving vehicle, the Fortuner driver turned his car right.
But as the car had not completely overtaken the bus, the rear part of the Fortuner brushed with the bus. This resulted in the Fortuner driver losing control of the vehicle. The Toyota Fortuner then jumped the median and careened head on into an oncoming Mahindra XUV500. Watch the CCTV footage below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CNTDxmisapA
CCTV footage shows that the driver of the Fortuner was travelling at high speed – tried an overtaking maneuver on the left lane and was then noted to take a sharp right turn to avoid a slower moving vehicle.
The driver of XUV500, Sheetal Arora stated that Rajinder Singh, driver of the Fortuner was apparently in an inebriated condition at the time of the accident. However, this has yet to be confirmed by the police even as Singh has already been booked on charges of culpable homicide. This accident has left 3 occupants of the XUV500 dead and 5 injured while the sole occupant of the Fortuner has suffered serious injuries.
This is not the first time an overtaking manouver going wrong has resulted in a fatal crash. Few months ago, an accident occurred at NH2, on Durgapur Expressway near Rathtala area in Burdwan district, West Bengal on Wednesday morning. A Maruti Suzuki Ciaz driver was driving rashly. On board were 7 people, including 3 children. He then overtook the tanker from the left and swerved to the right in front of the tanker and immediately slowed down. The tanker driver had to immediately brake so as to avoid rear ending the Ciaz but in this attempt lost control over the tanker, climbed onto the divider crushing the Ciaz under it.
The hot molten tar poured out of the tanker and onto the Ciaz leaving all passenger dead as they came in contact with the hot tar. One child survived the accident but could not be removed from the car in time and died due to suffocation after breathing in the fumes of the hot tar.
It was with fire brigade, ambulances and crane that onlookers and officials could extract passengers from the Ciaz and while the tanker was seized, the driver managed to escape. Maruti Suzuki Ciaz was purchased by a 42 year old officer of the Railway Protection Force just a few days earlier.
This accident once again draws attention to blatant flouting of road rules and regulations. Drivers put caution to the wind and take great risks while on the road. Drivers of smaller cars should realize that they are often inconspicuous to larger vehicles on the road, more particularly so when overtaking from the left. Large vehicles, due to size, weight and most often heavy loads find it difficult to maneuver on the roads. Reaction time is delayed especially when vehicles make sudden moves.
