Thane: Three people were killed and two others injured after a poultry truck allegedly being driven at high speed entered the wrong lane and crashed into a pickup truck on the Kalyan-Ahmednagar Highway near Murbad on Sunday morning. The three people travelling in the pickup truck died on the spot, while the poultry truck driver and cleaner were injured and rushed to a government hospital in Kalyan.

3 killed, 2 hurt after speeding poultry truck rams pickup truck near Murbad

The deceased were identified as Ajit Maruti Khapare, 25, Maruti Tukaram Khare, 55, and Ram Malu Sapate, 40, all residents of Khedle Talwale in Murbad taluka. The injured were identified as Hafiz Sheikh, the poultry truck driver, and Helay Sheikh, its cleaner. Both were admitted to a government hospital in Kalyan and were reportedly stable.

According to Tokawade police, the poultry truck was travelling from Ahilyanagar towards Kalyan, while the pickup truck was heading towards Ahilyanagar. The vehicles collided around 100 metres ahead of Karchonde Phata, police said.

Police said the poultry truck was allegedly travelling at high speed when it entered the opposite lane and collided with the pickup truck. The impact killed the three occupants of the pickup truck on the spot. The injured driver and cleaner of the poultry truck were taken to Kalyan for treatment.

Shital Kumar Naik, police inspector, Tokawade Police Station, told HT, “The poultry truck was allegedly being driven at a high speed and may have entered the opposite lane before colliding with the pickup truck, causing the accident.”

Police have registered a case of rash and negligent driving causing death against the poultry truck driver.

The accident caused traffic congestion on the highway for several hours, police said. The Kalyan-Ahmednagar route is an important road for transporting fruits and vegetables from Nashik, Pune and Ahilyanagar to Kalyan, Thane and Mumbai. Much of the produce is transported during the late-night and early-morning hours.