CNG-
3 die in Cumilla road crash
Three people were killed and four others injured in a three-way collision among a bus, tractor and a CNG-run auto-rickshaw on Cumilla-Noakhali Road in the district's Manoharganj upazila on Saturday.
The deceased were identified as Md Rafi,23, from Manoharganj upazila, Md Yasin,32, and Shadat Mia from Noakhali.
The accident occurred around 10 am when the speeding Dhaka-bound bus of ‘Himachal Paribahan’ from Noakhali hit a tractor first than an auto-rickshaw and finally crushed a CNG-run auto-rickshaw after hitting an electric pole in the Natherpetua area, police said.
The crash left three occupants of the auto-rickshaw dead on the spot, while four other passengers sustained injuries, said Zafar Ahmed, a sub-inspector at Natherpetua police post.
The injured were admitted to Cumilla Medical College Hospital after rescuing.
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The bodies of the deceased were sent those to the local hospital morgue, the officer said.
The injured were identified as deceased Md Rafi’s relative Mariam Aktar Tanha,7, and Nabil Khan,12, auto rickshaw passenger Abul Hossain and bus passenger Mahafia Begum.
Abul Hossain was later shifted to Dhaka Medical College Hospital with critical injuries, said SI Zafar.
Road accidents in Bangladesh
Road accidents are common in Bangladesh, and claim a number of lives every year.
During the last Eid-ul-Fitr holiday rush, road accidents claimed 323 lives in just 15 days, according to Bangladesh Jatri Kalyan Shamiti, a human rights body.
Besides, 513 people, including 63 children, were killed and 598 injured in 409 road accidents across the country in March, said another NGO Road Safety Foundation on April 5.
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According to the NGO, 147 lives were lost in 138 motorcycle accidents, which was some 28 of the total deaths.
In a report released in February 2020, the World Bank pointed out that Bangladesh needs to invest an estimated $7.8 billion over the next decade to halve its road crash fatalities.
The report attributed the high death rate on Bangladesh’s roads to lack of investments in systemic, targeted, and sustained road safety programmes.