A Maruti Ertiga car collided with a stationary truck, resulting in the death of one passenger and injuries to four others on SG Highway in the early hours February 26. The accident occurred around 5.45 am near Sola Bridge on the Sarkhej-Gandhinagar (SG) Highway, when the driver of the Ertiga failed to notice the truck parked in the middle of the road without any warning signs or barricades.

The incident

As per the police, the Maruti Ertiga was travelling from Junagadh towards Rajasthan. The driver, Raju Shriram Meena (26), along with passengers Pinturam Lalaram Meena (24), Charanbhai Lalaram Sharma (45), Deshraj Rameshchandra Sharma, and Srichand Nathuram Sharma (61), was heading home when the accident occurred.

A truck had been negligently parked in the middle of the highway without any warning signs, barricades, or reflective markers. Due to poor visibility at dawn, the Ertiga collided with the truck’s rear end. The impact left Raju Meena with a forehead injury, Pinturam Meena with an ear injury, Charanbhai Sharma with an abdominal injury, and Deshraj Sharma with injuries to the forehead and body. Tragically, Srichand Nathuram Sharma sustained severe head and facial injuries and died on the spot.

An emergency call was made to 108 ambulance services, and the injured were rushed to Sola Civil Hospital for treatment. The Ertiga’s front end was completely damaged due to the high-impact collision.

In his official complaint filed at the SG Highway police station, Raju Shriram Meena accused the truck driver of gross negligence, stating that the vehicle had been left in the middle of a busy highway without any cautionary measures. He further mentioned that the truck driver fled the scene after the accident, leaving behind no contact details.

The police have registered a case and launched an investigation under relevant sections of the Motor Vehicles Act and IPC for negligent driving and causing death due to negligence. Authorities are currently trying to recover CCTV footage from highway surveillance cameras and gathering eyewitness accounts to trace the driver.