TURA/SHILLONG, July 30: A man and his son tragically lost their lives when a fully-loaded boulder truck passing through the state highway via Ampati town in South West Garo Hills rammed into them on Friday.
The driver of the truck reportedly had fallen asleep behind the wheel.
The victims, Tenganbil M Marak (39) and his five-year-old son Bilkam R Marak, had gone to a store near Ampati Civil Hospital to procure food items. They were returning on a scooty when the truck (ML 09 A 4135) rammed into them. Both of them were killed on the spot.
The driver of the truck made an attempt to escape by jumping out of the truck and fleeing into the nearby forests.
He was spotted by farmers from the nearby paddy fields, who gave chase and apprehended him.
The accused was handed over to Ampati Police.
Ampai MLA raps govt
In the wake of this accident, Ampati MLA Miani D Shira has slammed the MDA Government over its ‘inability’ to resolve the issue pertaining to plying of overladen boulder trucks.
Shira asserted that all boulder trucks plying from Ampati are overloaded and drive above the speed limit. Over the last two years, a number of precious lives have been lost due to such ‘reckless and uncontrollable’ driving, she added.
Stating that the citizens of Ampati area and social organisations have met the district administration demanding for a weighbridge at the entry to South West Garo Hills district to check speed limits of these trucks, she informed that even legislators of the district have raised questions in the Assembly on the issue, adding that they were assured that a weighbridge would be constructed soon but nothing has materialised so far.
GSU demands compensation
Meanwhile, the Garo Students’ Union (GSU) from the region has demanded that the administration and the exporters association provide adequate compensation to the victims’ family.
The father who died in the mishap was a church elder in Ampati.
The union along with several other organisations have for long been pressing authorities to clamp down on overloading and speeding by dozens of trucks that ferry boulders from Bhutan to Bangladesh through the Garo Hills corridor.
Complaints of rash driving have for long been levelled against truckers and protests against the movement through the region have erupted in the recent past.
According to organisations from the district, there have been as many as six deaths due to rash driving by truckers in the last three years.
