Kolkata, Oct 3 (IANS) A female home guard died after a truck hit a police vehicle on National Highway 16 at Nekurseni under Dantan police station limits in West Midnapore district on Saturday.
Three more people were injured in the accident on the Kharagpur-Baleshwar stretch of National Highway 16.
According to the police, the deceased has been identified as Bharti Murmu (35).
Police said some education officials were returning after submitting Higher Secondary semester examination answer sheets of Manoharpur High School under Dantan police station limits at the post office in Nekurseni.
A police vehicle was escorting them towards the Nekurseni post office.
Allegedly, at that time, a truck heading towards the Belda area lost control and rammed into the police vehicle from behind.
Four people, including the female home guard travelling in the vehicle, sustained serious injuries due to the impact of the accident.
Officers from Belda police station reached the spot after receiving information about the incident.
The injured were rescued and shifted to hospital for treatment.
Some of them were admitted to Belda Super Speciality Hospital.
Later, the female home guard died while undergoing treatment at the hospital.
Police are investigating the circumstances that led to the accident.
West Midnapore Superintendent of Police Papiya Sultana said: “The woman was on home guard duty after being deployed from the police line. She died in a road accident.”
She added that the Additional Superintendent of Police and SDPO had been sent to the spot and that she was also proceeding to the hospital.
“The incident is being investigated,” she said.
Locals alleged that road accidents are frequent in the Nekurseni area and that there is a need for proper surveillance to prevent such incidents.
They also claimed that a portion of the road requires repairs as it poses the risk of further accidents.
The locals urged the concerned authorities and the local panchayat to address the issue on an urgent basis, saying Saturday’s accident had cast a shadow of concern in the area.
–IANS
sch/dan