Road crashes claim nine lives

Nine people were killed in separate road accidents across five districts in the last two days, report our correspondents and a news agency.

Two minors, Mintu Biswas (12) and Happy Biswas (10), were killed when an army vehicle lost control after a tyre puncture and hit them on Dhaka-Chattogram highway at Nurmanikchar in Debidwar  upazila in Cumilla around 1:30pm yesterday, police told our Cumilla correspondent. Two others were also injured in  the accident.

  The bodies were handed over to the families, while the injured were admitted to Chandina Upazila Health Complex, said Monirul Islam, in-charge of  Elliotganj highway police outpost. 

In Chattogram, a local leader of Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) was killed and his friend was injured when their motorcycle overturned on Hafez  Bazlur Rahman Road in Raozan upazila, reports UNB.

The  deceased was identified as Sajib Mutsudddi (19), a student of Imam Gazzali University College.  He was the finance secretary of Pahartali union unit of BCL.

Rokon  Uddin, chairman of Pahartali Union Parishad, said the accident took  place around 11pm on Monday when the motorcycle fell into a small hole, leaving Sajib and his friend Arnab critically injured.

They were taken to Chittagong Medical College Hospital. Sajib died there in the early hours of yesterday.

Meanwhile in Bagerhat, a man was crushed under the wheels of a truck on Khulna-Mawa highway in Fakirhat upazila yesterday.

The deceased was identified as Nur Mohammad Farazi, a cook by profession, reports UNB.

Nur was hit by the truck while he was crossing the road, leaving him critically injured, said ANM Khairul Anam, officer-in-charge of Fakirhat Police Station. He was rushed to Khulna Medical College Hospital where doctors pronounced him dead.

Police seized the truck but its driver and helper managed to flee the scene.

In Kushtia, at least three people, including a minor, were killed when a truck crashed into an auto-rickshaw on Kushtia-Iswardi highway in Bheramara upazila yesterday afternoon. Two others were injured in the incident, reports UNB. The deceased could not be identified yet. The accident occurred when the truck smashed the three-wheeler in front of Bheramara powerhouse passenger shed around 3pm, leaving the driver of the auto-rickshaw dead on the spot and five passengers injured, police quoted locals as saying.

Later, two of the injured died while being taken to a nearby hospital.

In Rajbari, a seven-year-old was killed in a road accident at Paikar Mor under Pangsha upazila in Rajbari yesterday, reports our Faridpur correspondent.

Quoting locals, Ahsan Ullah, officer-in-charge of Pangsha Police Station, said, “The accident took place when a battery-run three-wheeler hit the child, while he was playing in front of his house. Injured critically, he was rushed to Pangsha Upazila Health Complex where a doctor declared him dead.”