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Ahmedabad, October 24 (IANS) Two elderly women died in a road accident on Mahadevpura-Gwada Road in Bijapur in Gujarat’s Mehsana district.
According to police sources, an unknown speeding vehicle hit the victims before fleeing from the scene.
The collision was so severe that both the women suffered serious head injuries and died on the spot.
The deceased have been identified as Puri Thakor and Muli Thakor, both residents of the local area.
After the incident, Bijapur police reached the spot, recovered the bodies and sent them for post-mortem.
A case of hit-and-run and accidental death has been registered against the unidentified driver.
Authorities have launched an operation to trace the vehicle and driver, scan CCTV footage of the surrounding areas and record statements of witnesses.
Police officials said every possible effort is being made to bring the accused to justice and console the families of the victims.
In the three years from 2020-21 to 2022-23, 4,860 hit-and-run cases were recorded in the state, resulting in 3,449 deaths and 2,720 injuries. Furthermore, data presented in the state assembly revealed that from April 2022 to March 2023, a hit-and-run death occurred almost every eight hours across Gujarat.
The Gujarat government has stepped up its efforts to prevent hit-and-run incidents and widespread traffic violations through a combination of technology, enforcement and awareness campaigns. For example, it has launched the e-challan system at 86 toll plazas across the state, which has flagged over 77,000 violations in just two months, including missing insurance, pollution under control certificates and vehicle fitness checks.
Meanwhile, the Gujarat Road Safety Authority (GRSA) has set a target of achieving 75 per cent compliance with helmet and seat-belt rules by 2030, supported by crash-barrier installation, driver eye-checking programs and school-based awareness campaigns.
On the enforcement front, specific drives in urban centers like Ahmedabad and Rajkot have resulted in thousands of fines being imposed for wrong-side driving, overspeeding and non-use of helmets – with e-speed guns and interceptor vehicles now being increasingly used.
Collectively, these measures are designed to detect criminals more quickly, create a deterrent effect and reduce the number of unidentified getaway vehicles in hit-and-run cases.
–IANS
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