Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat sounded deeply shocked over two girls having died in a road accident with the scooty they were riding getting stuck in a pothole and a dumper running over them. He instructed the Chief Engineer PWD to fill the potholes gaping on the roads immediately. While mentioning that the roads turn potholed particularly during the rainy season, he asked the officials concerned to be serious. At the same time, he expressed his displeasure over the working style of PWD.
An eye witness account suggests that the scooty lost its balance and fell after which the speeding tanker hit the hapless youngsters. The duo was rushed to the associated hospital of the Government Doon Medical College where they were declared brought dead. The deceased were later identified as Kanika Sharma (29), daughter of D V Sharma, a resident of Pragati Vihar, Neembuwala and Varsha Dandariyal (23), daughter of Rakesh Kumar, resident of Chukkhuwala.
Varsha had completed her post graduation in Science and had recently completed her Bachelor of Education (B.Ed). She was teaching in a private school located in Naya Gaon.
However, five months running since the Government came into power, the potholes are still gaping. It is to be seen how the CM’s order would come to stop people from being killed under the wheels.
Meanwhile, Uttarakhand Kranti Dal (UKD), the only regional party of the state, has demanded FIRs to be lodged against PWD and Municipal Corporation Dehradun which are responsible for taking care of the roads. The UKD leaders said that the officials responsible for the deaths must be booked and punished following a high level inquiry. “CM is moving around the city and yet, he failed to notice the potholed roads. With the CM choosing to look the other way, the officials concerned are taking this as connivance for their irresponsibility. Roads have been dug up as part of ADB projects. But nobody is bothered to repair them. The tragic accident having happened on Rajpur Road indicates the grim road condition of Dehradun's outskirts,” said an UKD leader.