Gwalior: truck kills 15 Navarātri devotees at Śītalā Mātā temple; City SP removed
Around 1:30 am on 18 October, a paddy-laden truck that police had stopped at a barricade lost control on a slope, ploughed through stalls and devotees and hit the temple gate, bringing down part of the gateway wall.
- India.com
Around 1:30 am on 18 October, a paddy-laden truck that police had stopped at a barricade lost control on a slope, ploughed through stalls and devotees and hit the temple gate, bringing down part of the gateway wall. SP Dharamveer Yadav said preliminary findings point to mechanical failure.
The owner and the driver have been arrested. Chief Minister Mohan Yadav removed the City SP, suspended eight police personnel and ordered an inquiry.
Key data
15 dead and 27 injured (police figures). State aid of ₹4 lakh per death, ₹2 lakh per seriously injured and ₹50,000 for others; PMNRF ₹2 lakh and ₹50,000.
Why it matters
Heavy vehicles were officially barred from the area, so this was a failure to enforce the rule, and it exposes weak traffic safety at temple festivals.
GK: did you know?
The Prime Minister's National Relief Fund was set up in January 1948 to help people displaced from Pakistan after Partition.
