Bengaluru: Karnataka Chief Minister K Siddaramaiah on Thursday said that the death of four people in Bengaluru were not because of potholes but were accidents.
Four people have died in accidents in October because of the battered condition of some of the city roads.
The Karnataka government and Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), the city civic body, came under sharp criticism following the incident.
The recent death was of G Veena, 21-year-old, resident of Kundana in Devanahalli, who was returning home riding pillion with her elder sister G Lakshmi, 24 on Tuesday.
Veena died after she was flung from a scooter and crushed by a truck near Devanahalli.
The incident happened at the Shettarahalli gate, while trying to negotiate a pothole, Lakshmi slowed down the two-wheeler when a truck hit them from behind, police said.
Read: Bengaluru woman tries to avoid pothole, dies after running into truck
As the women fell off their vehicle, the truck ran over Veena, killing her instantaneously. Lakshmi too sustained serious injuries and was admitted to a hospital.
On Sunday, a 52-year-old woman Radha was run over by a lorry after she fell off the scooter when the rider lost control while negotiating a pothole. The incident was reported near Nayandahalli Junction on Mysuru Road.
On October 3, a couple, Anthony Joseph, 55, and his wife Sagai Mary, 52, died on the spot after a Tamil Nadu government bus ran over them when they fell off the bike while avoiding a pothole on Sirsi Flyover on Mysuru Road near Nalanda theatre.
Siddaramaiah on Monday gave a 15-day deadline to fill all the potholes in Bengaluru and declared that his government will not hesitate to initiate disciplinary action against engineers and contractors who fail to meet the deadline.
During the high level meeting with state officials, the chief minister also blamed torrential rains for the potholes in the city and has promised to rid the city of potholes in a fortnight.
The CM on Monday had decided to release Rs 700 crore to fill potholes as well as develop good roads in the city.
Siddaramaiah said the condition of roads in the city has deteriorated as Bengaluru received heavy rains for the last 42 days.
