Truck rams into slum, 8 kids killed

, March 20: In a tragic incident late Tuesday night, eight children were

and over a dozen injured when a speeding truck overturned at Nagla Patwari near the bypass in Aligarh, 335 km from here, police said.

The incident happened when the truck, loaded with bricks, got stuck in a pothole. The driver lost control, the truck turned turtle and then hurtled into a roadside slum in the village.

The dead include five sisters, police said.

The deceased have been identified as Imran (five months), Akram (3), Kausar (7), Shabana (10), Khushboo (5), Zareena (8), Suhail (5) and Hazra (5).

Angry at the delay in arrival of cranes to begin rescue operations to pull out the children from under the truck, a mob went on a rampage and chased away senior district officials from the accident site.

Angry residents alleged that they had petitioned district authorities many times to get the road repaired, as they feared an accident that could cause loss of lives. They said their pleas fell on deaf ears.

The condition of the injured is stated to be serious, though out of danger, police officials said.

The truck driver and its cleaner were also among the injured.

Angry people blocked the road for many hours, protesting the laxity of authorities in repairing the road.

IANS