Four school students lost their lives in a tragic accident in Kerala’s Palakkad on Friday, December 12. The accident occurred at the Palakkad-Kozhikode National Highway in Panayampadam. The deceased girls have been identified as students at the Karimba Higher Secondary School.
According to reports, The accident took place when a lorry speeding towards them overturned around 4 pm. Five students were waiting at the bus stop after finishing their exams to return home. Three girls died on the spot and two girls were seriously injured and taken to the hospital. While one student succumbed at the hospital, another student remains critical.
The mortal remains of three students were taken to Palakkad District Hospital for postmortem. One body was sent to Mother Care Hospital in the district. The lorry driver and cleaner were also taken to the hospital with minor injuries. Fire and rescue service personnel and police joined the public for the rescue procedure.
Police told the media that the cause of the accident can only be revealed after a proper investigation. According to a primary inquiry, the accident occurred when the lorry gave way to another vehicle.
Meanwhile, residents blocked the road soon after the accident. They said such accidents were a common occurrence on the road due to its unscientific construction. “Since it is exam time, there are fewer students on the road. Otherwise, the number of students would be large. Imagine the situation if an accident occurred at that time, we cannot afford to lose other lives. Hence, the protest will continue until the authorities open their eyes,” a resident told the media.
Kerala’s Minister of Transport KB Ganesh Kumar told the media that the state government was planning to conduct awareness programmes to prevent such accidents as the number of accident deaths are increasing in the state.