Phulnakhara: A 12-year-old boy died after a truck ran over him near Balikuda railway level-crossing Sunday morning.
Police said they have recovered the body of Hemant Nayak alias Sahil, a resident of Balikuda in Cuttack Sadar police limits, before sending it to SCB Medical College and Hospital (SCBMCH) in Cuttack for autopsy.
“A case (208/18) of unnatural death has been registered the truck has been seized. Efforts are on to track down the truck driver at the earliest,” Cuttack Sadar inspector in-charge (IIC) Sudhanshu Bhushan Jena told the media.
Police said the mishap occurred around 9am when Sahil, a Class VI student of Acharya Harihara Vidyapeeth at Uttamapur, was on his way home on a bicycle after attending coaching classes in Gopalpur here. “The truck (OD-29-D-0299) knocked the schoolboy from the rear near the level-crossing. The boy fell off the bicycle and his head came under the truck’s wheels, leading to his instant death,” said an eyewitness.
Locals, meanwhile, blocked the road by placing the body on road for a couple of hours demanding compensation for the bereaved family and arrest of the errant driver. “Such mishaps are frequent near the level-crossing here. Apart from the compensation, authorities must ensure deployment of personnel to man the traffic here,” said one of the protestors.
On being informed, Zone-IV assistant commissioner of police (ACP) Nimai Charan Sethy and Cuttack Sadar IIC rushed to the spot. The road blockade was withdrawn after Sadar IIC handed over Rs 20,000 to Sahil’s family members and assured to deploy a home guard near the level-crossing.