NOIDA: One of the four people injured in a collision between a Thar and an e-rickshaw in Noida earlier this week has succumbed during treatment, an officer said on Thursday. The other three continue to be under treatment but have showed improvement, he added.The accident happened on Monday when the four were travelling in an e-rickshaw and the Thar hit the three-wheeler near Prayag Hospital in Sector 49. Eyewitnesses claimed the SUV was being driven rashly and hit the e-rickshaw with such force that all four injured were thrown out of the vehicle. The police and passers-by took the injured, Rakesh, Rajesh, Anoop and Omprakash, to the hospital, where Omprakash passed away on Wednesday. All four were residents of Barola village and worked as e-rickshaw drivers. On the day of the accident, Rajesh was driving the e-rickshaw that was hit by the Thar.The e-rickshaw was mangled while the SUV’s front was damaged and it lost a wheel. The driver of the erring car was taken into custody and questioned. A preliminary investigation suggests that overspeeding and negligent driving were the primary causes of the accident. Several videos of the accident had surfaced on social media, showing the damaged SUV, the wrecked e-rickshaw, the broken wheel lying on the road, and bloodstains at the site.Om Prakash, who suffered injuries to his head, arms, legs and abdomen, underwent surgery on Tuesday, but his condition did not improve after the operation. He died during treatment the next day.Meanwhile, the other three showed signs of recovery, police said. Anoop’s wife, Sarla, on Wednesday said they were initially facing financial issues in getting his treatment done but the police had stepped in to help them.Locals have expressed anger over frequent incidents of reckless driving in Sector 49. They claimed that repeated requests to enforce stricter speed control measures did not yield adequate results. Police said strict action will be taken if the driver’s negligence is established.
