Mumbai: A week after two trees collapsed onto an autorickshaw on Linking Road in Khar, 15-year-old Aarika Shrivastava died on Sunday morning, while another victim remains critical after multiple surgeries, officials and family members said.
The accident occurred at 6.08 pm last Sunday when two trees crashed onto the moving autorickshaw carrying siblings Aarika (15) and Manasvi Shrivastava (19), along with their family friend Harshita Kumar (21), who had stepped out for Mother’s Day shopping.
Aarika, a Class 10 student preparing for the JEE through an integrated programme, suffered severe head injuries and died at 6.05 am on Sunday. Her sister, Manasvi sustained minor injuries, while Harshita remains critical after suffering severe head trauma, skull fractures and blood clots in the brain.
Harshita’s father, Harish Kumar, questioned the lack of accountability, saying the girls’ dreams were cut short before they “could even see the world”.
Kumar said his family had already spent ₹15 lakh on treatment, and Aarika’s family had incurred medical expenses exceeding ₹9 lakh.
According to the BMC, the trees inside Bluestone Properties Pvt Ltd premises became unstable after debris was allegedly dumped around their bases during construction work. In a statement issued, Bluestone Properties said it was “profoundly grieved” by the incident.
Police booked the developer for negligent acts endangering life and are adding culpable homicide charges following Aarika’s death. The SRA has issued a stop-work notice to the developer.
