15 killed in Gujarat after truck runs over labourers sleeping on footpath

Fifteen migrant labourers were crushed to death after a truck ran over a group of 18 people sleeping on a footpath at Kim Char Rasta near Surat in Gujarat, India, in the wee hours on Tuesday.

The victims, all of whom were daily labourers from Rajasthan’s Banswara district, were sleeping on the footpath when a sugarcane-laden tractor crashed into another truck.

The truck driver lost control of the vehicle and veered off the road, onto the footpath, running over 18 people who were sleeping there.

While 12 persons died on the spot, three of the eight injured died in a nearby hospital, news agency PTI quoted police as saying.

The truck driver has been arrested, the police said.

Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) took to Twitter to announce ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh each from PMNRF (Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund).

“Ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakhs each from PMNRF (Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund) would be given to the next of kin of those who have lost their lives due to the accident in Surat. Rs 50,000 each would be given to those injured,” the PMO tweeted.