SUV collides with truck in Andhra’s Kurnool; 8 dead, 13 injured

EIght people were killed and 13 others got injured when an SUV they were travelling in collided with a ready-mix concrete motortruck nigh Chilakaladona hamlet in Mantralayam cube of Andhra Pradesh’s Kurnool territory in the early hours of Thursday, police said.Chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu expressed grief over the accident and directed officials to ensure the best possible treatment for the injured and extend support to the bereaved families.Prime Minister Narendra Modi also condoled the loss of lives and announced an ex gratia of ₹2 lakh each to the families of the deceased and ₹50,000 for the injured from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund.“I extend my condolences to those who have lost their loved ones and pray for the speedy recovery of the injured. An ex-gratia of ₹2 lakh from PMNRF would be given to the next of kin of each deceased. The injured would be given ₹50,000,” said PM Modi in a post on X.State transport minister Mandipalli Ramprasad Reddy and industries minister TG Bharat Gupta also expressed condolences and directed officials to provide necessary medical care to the injured.The vehicle was carrying 21 devotees from Chikmagalur in Karnataka to the Sri Raghavendra Swamy temple in Mantralayam. “The accident occurred around 3.30 am when the driver of the SUV allegedly lost control and veered into the opposite lane, colliding with an oncoming truck,” said Yemmiganur Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) N Bhargavi.Emergency teams rushed to the spot and carried out rescue operations, he said. The mangled vehicle indicated the severity of the collision, police said, adding that victims’ families have been informed.Five people died on the spot, while three others succumbed to their injuries during treatment, the DSP said. The deceased have been identified as Kumar (50), Deepika Veena (42), Sunil (40), Yashoda alias Thayamma (60), Puttamma (55), Lakshmi (40), Meenakshi (50) and Belli (5).Officials said the injured were shifted to the government hospital in Yemmiganur, with six later referred to Kurnool Government General Hospital (GGH) due to the severity of their condition.Kurnool district collector Dr A Siri, who visited the GGH, said two of the injured had head injuries and were in critical condition, while the remaining four were stable.Kurnool superintendent of police (SP) Vikrant Patil said the group had left Chikkamagaluru around 4 pm on Wednesday in a Mahindra Bolero SUV. “We are investigating as to who was at fault, whether it was the SUV driver or the truck driver,” he said, adding that a case has been registered in the matter.