Barbil: In a tragic incident, a woman was killed after being run over by a speeding truck on NH-520 at Kendudihi Chowk under Rugudi police limits in Keonjhar district, Thursday night. The deceased woman was identified as Phulabati Rana, 48.
According to sources, the incident took place at around 9:30pm Thursday when the driver of a speeding truck lost control of the vehicle and ran over Phulabati. Another truck plying behind the accident-causing vehicle also ran over Phulabati leading to her death on the spot. Tension ensued following the incident as angry locals kept the body of the deceased and staged a road blockade on NH520 demanding compensation for the next of kin of the deceased and a government job for one member of the bereaved family. Irate locals also called for the immediate removal of illegally parked heavy vehicles from the highway.
On being informed, Rugudi police reached the spot and tried to pacify the protesters. However, they failed to convince them to remove the blockade. Later Barbil tehsildar DSS Joshi reached the spot to placate the angry locals but to no avail. The road blockade continued for 16 hours from Thursday 9:30pm till 3:30pm, Friday. Finally, after a lot of effort by the district administration, two mining companies assured special parking spaces for trucks and also agreed to provide jobs to one family member of the deceased woman. Due to the road blockade, transport of minerals was completely halted and road communication was severely affected.