The Hindu : Front Page : Lorry runs over motorcyclist, pillion rider hospitalised

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Sep 15, 2008
ePaper | Mobile/PDA Version

Front Page

Front Page

Lorry runs over motorcyclist, pillion rider hospitalised

K. Manikandan

Youths fell from the two-wheeler after hitting a barricade

— Photo: K.Manikandan

DANGER ZONE: The stretch of GST Road near the MIT Road overbridge at Chromepet where accidents have become common.

TAMBARAM: A 19-year-old student was run over by a lorry and his friend hospitalised when their motorcycle rammed a barricade near the MIT road overbridge on Grand Southern Trunk road, Chromepet, past midnight on Saturday.

Traffic police said while John Thomas died, his friend Parthas was undergoing treatment in a private hospital near the accident spot.

Thomas hailed from Chenganassery in Kerala and was a second year B.Com student in the evening stream at Madras Christian College, Tambaram. He shared a room in Poondi Bazaar, East Tambaram, near the college with Parthas, a second year student in a private engineering college and also hailing from Kerala.

On Saturday night, the two were returning from a night show at a theatre in Chromepet.

Thomas, who was riding the Bajaj Pulsar motorcycle that had a Kerala registration, reportedly lost control of his vehicle after the handlebar hit the first of the three movable barricades placed across the road by the Chennai Suburban Traffic Police to regulate the speed of vehicles as there is a pedestrian crossing ahead.

Both fell from the motorcycle and even before Thomas could get back on his feet, a goods-laden lorry ran over him. Traffic police said a couple of people had noticed the motorcycle hitting the barricade and falling, but had not noted down the registration number of the lorry that sped away.

Judging by the rate of accidents, the stretch of GST Road near the MIT bridge in Chromepet is among the most hazardous. While it has eased congestion, it has also made it easier for drivers to indulge in overspeeding and rash driving. Hence, three barricades were placed at the spot, police said.

Succumbs to injuries

On Saturday night, a 65-year-old man succumbed to injuries he suffered in an accident at the pedestrian crossing at the same spot earlier this month. K.Chinnappan of Lakshmipuram in Chromepet was rushed to a private hospital and later referred to the Government General Hospital in Chennai, where he died around 8 p.m. Cases under Section 304 (a) of the Indian Penal Code were registered by Tambaram Traffic Police (Investigation).

On June 7, a postgraduate in Biotechnology died on the spot when he sustained critical head injuries after dashing against a barricade on GST Road in Tambaram Sanatorium.

While police say that such accidents would not have taken place had the barricades not been there, they are quick to add that these movable steel structures had become an integral part of road safety measures.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Front Page