In a chilling and gruesome incident in Bengaluru, a 24-year-old youth’s body was sliced into two after a lorry ran him over. The impact was such that the severed lower half of Harish Nanjappa's torso and legs lay strewn on one side, while his head and upper torso lay in the middle of the road. He survived for around 20 agonising minutes before succumbing to his injuries.
Even as people gathered around him and took pictures and videos of the gory incident, the youth kept requesting for help in his severely incapacitated state with whatever little life was left in him.
While he was being taken to hospital, a selfless Harish told the paramedics in the ambulance that he wished to donate his organs and breathed his last.
Some on social media have compared him to Dadichi, a devotee of Lord Shiva in Hindu mythology who had sacrificed his life so that the gods could make weapons from his bones.
“Ambulances reached Harish in about 8 minutes after the accident was reported. He was alive when he was rushed to the nearest government hospital. A few minutes after reaching there, he passed away,” DySP Rajendra Kumar told The Hindu.
The doctors at the hospital were shocked to know about his presence of mind.
Dr Bhujang Shetty of Narayana Netralaya told reporters, “Luckily, he was wearing a helmet. His eyes were not damaged. His eyes will be donated to two individuals. Sadly, his other organs could not be harvested.”
Police have booked the driver of the lorry for death due to negligence and rash driving.
Harish Nanjappa was on his bike and travelling to Bengaluru when he was hit by a lorry on Tuesday morning on the state highway at Thippagondanahalli. By the time the ambulance arrived and took him to the nearby Nelamangala Hospital, it was too late, and he was declared dead on arrival.
Harish worked at SSMS Private Limited in Whitefield, Bengaluru.