Patna: Two construction workers died and four others sustained serious injuries after a head-on collision between a school van and an autorickshaw on the NH-139 in Arwal district on Sunday morning. The incident occurred near the Madhusrava turn under Mehendia police station area.The deceased were identified as 37-year-old Mithlesh Kumar and 34-year-old Raja Bind, residents of Mattuchak village under Paras Bigha police station area of Jehanabad district. The injured included Munrik Bind and Ravish Bind, residents of Matuk Chak, Pappu Manjhi and Sadhu Bind, residents of Sendhwa village.The victims, all construction workers, were travelling in the autorickshaw from Ankopur to Maa Kamakhya Construction’s plant at Pahelija in Mehendia. One passenger died on the spot due to the impact of the collision. Four others sustained serious injuries, with one of them in critical condition. He was referred from Sadar hospital to Patna for advanced treatment but succumbed to his injuries on the way.According to police, the collision was so severe that the autorickshaw was completely mangled, trapping the occupants inside. A grader machine had to be deployed to rescue the injured workers. The accident caused a long traffic jam on the highway, which was cleared after the damaged vehicles were removed with the help of a JCB machine.Mehendia police station in-charge Chandan Kumar Jha said that a total of six people travelling in the autorickshaw were involved in the crash. “One died at the spot, while the injured were rushed to Sadar hospital, Arwal, for treatment. Police have seized both the autorickshaw and the school van, and a detailed investigation into the cause of the accident is underway. The bodies of the deceased have been sent for postmortem,” he said.He added, “Since the accident occurred on a Sunday, the school van was empty, averting what could have been a much larger tragedy.”
