NAVI MUMBAI: A 35-year-old techie from Andheri and his 60-year-old mother were among the three killed in an accident on Mumbai Goa highway in Lanja taluka, Ratnagiri on Sunday around 8.30pm.
The mishap was reported on Anjnari bridge. A soil loaded truck plying towards Goa lost control and crashed into the car, a Maruti Suzuki, in which the techie and his mother were travelling towards Mumbai.
Both the vehicles fell about 30 feet into the Kajli river, and the truck fell on top of the car. The 35-year-old truck driver too lost his life. The techie and his family were returning to their native place in Chiplun from Malvan. The techie's wife and father were severely injured .
The police said the truck driver Vijesh Sawant (35) died on the spot, while the truck cleaner, Jayram Tambe (24) narrowly escaped with minor injuries.
The deceased in the car include Samir Shinde (35) and his mother Suhasini Shinde (60). The injured are in the ICU unit of a private hospital in Ratnagiri.
Samir and his family are residents of Andheri East.
"The truck driver lost control on the slope with a turn meters ahead of the bridge causing the mishap," said Dadasaheb Ghutukade, police inspector, Lanja.
"An accidental death case has been registered against the truck driver for negligently causing death, hurt, grievous injury, etc." said the police inspector.
"Samir is a chief technical officer while his wife Samrudi (30) is an IT professional of a Mumbai-based software company," said Dhananjay Shinde, the deceased Samir's uncle.
"They are posted in Malvan and the family was returning from Malvan to their native Rectoli village in Chiplun. They were staying in Andheri (E) for the last forty years,"added the uncle of the deceased.
"Due to Samir's posting, they are here for the last few months," said Dayanand Shinde, another uncle of of the deceased.
"Another bridge has been constructed nearby on the Goa highway, but the existing one will continue," said MM Madkarikar, deputy engineer, PWD-NH division, Ratnagiri in reply to locals' demand to reduce the highway slope and turn to avoid the rising mishaps.
