Kurnool: Eight women and a man were killed and five persons seriously injured when an autorickshaw being driven on the wrong lane on the national highway hit an RTC bus at Somayajulapalle near Orvakallu, 25 km from Kurnool city on Sunday morning. The condition of the injured is stated to be very serious.
At least 13 persons were travelling in the autorickshaw. The dead belong to Kallapari, Chanugondla and Ramallakota villages in Kodumuru mandal and Chanugondla village in Gudur mandal.
The police said the passengers had hired three autorickshaws to go to Mahanandi for ayurvedic treatment. While two vehicles went safely ahead at Somayajulapalle, the third autorickshaw moving on the wrong side of the highway rammed into the RTC bus going from Nandyal to Hyderabad.
Seven persons in the autorickshaw died on the spot while two more succumbed at Govern-ment General Hospital, Kurnool, the police said. DIG Ghattamaneni Sri-nivas rushed to the spot immediately after coming to know of the incident along with SP, administration, Shekh Shaw Valli, Additional SP I. Venkatesh and DSP, traffic, C.M. Gangiah.
The injured were admitted to Kurnool Government General hospital. The autorickshaw driver has been booked for rash driving. The police registered a case against him under Sections 279, 337, 338, and 304-A of the Indian Penal Code.
Among the dead are Boya Mareppa, 60, Somakka, 70, Gowramma, 60, Boya Eramma, 57, Manikyamma, 46, Lak-shmidevi, 40, Ussenam-ma, 60, Govindamma, 62 and Lakshmi Devi, 55.
