National Highway-31 near Bhagalpur turned deadly Tuesday evening when a bus bound for Saharsa plowed into an e-rickshaw carrying medical returnees from Narayanpur, also hitting a pickup van. The crash in Dayalpur, Jhandapur thana area, snuffed out four lives—including a child’s—and left six injured, five critically.
Pandemonium ensued with screams piercing the air as bystanders rushed to aid. The e-rickshaw was obliterated in the high-impact wreck. Medical teams at JLN Hospital are battling to save the survivors.
Top brass including District Magistrate Dr. Naval Kishor Chaudhary and the local SP descended on the scene. Autopsies are underway for the bodies in custody, while cranes cleared the road for normalcy.
Identified victims include Arvind Kumar Mandal of Katihar and 6-year-old Kunal Kumar from Morakahi, Khagaria. Two others await recognition, prolonging agony for anxious kin amid a shaken neighborhood.
As investigations unfold, focus sharpens on the bus driver’s negligence and broader highway perils. This tragedy amplifies urgent needs for speed cameras, better lighting, and driver training programs. The community, united in mourning, urges swift justice and preventive reforms to safeguard lives.