Goemkarpondesj
Canacona: Canacona residents were crying foul over the narrow and treacherous NH-66 road Gulem-Karmalghat section; the first major calamity befell as two residents of Chapoli became the fatal victims as a rashly driven Inter-State Luxury Bus mauled motorcycle-borne husband-wife early Tuesday morning at Gulem-Canacona.
GA 09 J 1225 (Hero Passion) Rider Paik Katu Wagonkar and pillion-rider his wife Priyanka Wagonkar, residents of Chapoli Canacona, expired, while the two injured are Sonal Pinto 32/M had a dislocation of Shoulder and an unknown Female of around 22 years of age having a severe head injury. Both injured bus passengers of the Intercity bus no. NL 01 B 1631 proceeding from Karwar to Margao are referred to District Hospital Margao, police informed.
Incidentally, following an outcry over the streak of mishaps taking place on the narrow Gulem-Karmalghat NH-66 section, the government was recently compelled to approve finances to initiate measures to widen this road, and then as the process is still underway a major calamity, which several people has anticipated at this treacherous road section have finally occurred.
The deceased (husband-wife duo) motorcycle-borne are locals (residents of Chapoli, and were returning home after an overnight stay at the neighbouring Gulem after the husband, employed as a security guard at a private school at Chapoli, had picked his wife (who stayed overnight after a get-together program at Gulem) from Gulem and riding with her back to their home.
It was just past 8 a.m. on Tuesday that the deceased on a motorcycle (GA09 J1225) on NH-66 heading toward Canacona had crossed the Bhumipurush temple, Gulem when a menacingly driven Luxury bus (NL 01 B1631) haphazardly coming in the opposite direction hit the motorcycle head-on, throwing both the rider from their bike (the bus was reportedly going from right to left and again came on right-side before went down the road on its right side and landed down the fields below, and came to a halt 100 mtrs away after hitting a bringing down at tree, but still standing in its tyres.
While the motorcycle fell below the road, the rider (Paiek Vagonkar) with serious head injuries fell on the road; the women pillion rider was caught in one of the tyres of the Bus and got dragged along with the bus, which came to a halt after hitting and breaking a tree.
The woman, with almost her lung coming out, had her upper Torso separated, almost making two pieces of her body.
The driver went absconding soon after, while the grievously injured Paiek Vagonkar, along with two bus passengers, were shifted to Community Health Centre (CHC), Canacona. Paiek Kantu Vagondkar (44), however, soon went into convulsions and breathed his last at CHC, informing health staff on duty. The two injured bus passengers, one of whom (female) had severe head injuries and already began to have convalesces and another male person identified as Sonal Pinto, were shifted to the District Hospital.
Meanwhile, Canaocna police shifted the body of Priyanka Vagonkar (42), whose body was almost mutilated and her upper Torso separated and her husband to Margao for post-mortem and further preservation.
Even though there were no eye accounts of the mishap, going by the ground realities, a police source at sight informed that the Bus driver could have possibly dosed – off after negotiating the sharp turn at full speed. The bus was seen almost going down the road at the straight road section and going by the mark of the tyre, the driver brought the bus back on the road, only to proceed in the wrong direction (right-hand side), eventually hitting the on-coming two-wheeler (on its left side of the road). The bus had almost flown past the road and went down over two meters below the fields before coming to a halt after hitting a tree.
According to Canaocna PI Chandrakant Gawas, the bus driver N Nagaraza, a resident of Karnataka is detained and presently lodged at Canaocna police station.
Many locals came rushing to the accident site south to blame the government for the deadly mishap that snuffed out the lives of one family from Chapoli, even as the police and everyone were looking for the driver’s whereabouts. The situation even got tense as some residents finding no sight of the driver to explain the cause of the mishap, were threatening to put the bus on fire. There were also rumours doing rounds that people were planning to hold rasta rook for the government’s failure to act before one of the major calamities caused the death of two locals.
Incidentally, Canacona police are making further enquiries and investigating the accident, informed Canacona PI.
