Lucknow: At least six people were killed and 12 injured in separate road crashes in Uttar Pradesh due to reduced visibility caused by dense fog, police said on Thursday. Poor visibility due to dense fog also forced Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to cancel his Thursday's trip to Ayodhya, press secretary in the CM's office Mrityunjay Kumar said.
Adityanath was supposed to fly to the temple town ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit on December 30 to inaugurate a new airport and a new railway building. According to the state Meteorological department officials, dense fog was reported from across Uttar Pradesh in the early hours of Thursday, with visibility plunging to less than 40 metres in some areas.
Weather department officials have forecast dense fog with visibility dropping to 50 metres in the state for the next two days in the morning hours. In Lakhimpur Kheri, a man and his sister were crushed to death on Sisaiya-Dhaurahra road near Baburi village when their bike collided with a speeding truck early in the morning.
Pankaj Kumar (22) and his younger sister Sushma, residents of Abhaypur village under Dhaurahra Kotwali limits, died in the accident. Poor visibility due to dense fog on the road was stated to be the reason behind the tragic accident, DSP P P Singh said. Police said the truck also overturned after the collision.
In Unnao, two men were killed when their motorcycle collided with a stationary truck, police said, suspecting that the accident took place due to dense fog. "Govind Pathak (31) and Vivekanand (21) were travelling on a motorcycle and it collided with a truck on Wednesday night," Sehramau Station House Officer (SHO) Kamal Dubey said.
"It appears that the duo failed to spot the truck due to dense fog. While Pathak died on the spot, Vivekanand succumbed to injuries at a hospital a few hours later," he said. Early Thursday, constable Dinesh Yadav, who was driving a police jeep, was injured when his vehicle collided with a truck in an area under the Purva police station. The constable has been admitted to a hospital, officials said.
In Muzaffarnagar district of western UP, two men were killed after being run over by a truck in Miranpur Police station area on Wednesday night. Station House Officer (SHO) Ravindra Singh Yadav said, "Naveen (25) and his friend Vineet (24) were travelling on a motorcycle when a truck hit their bike and ran over the duo, killing them on the spot."
Police have sent the body for postmortem. In Mathura, six people were injured when a speeding vehicle hit an ambulance on the Yamuna Expressway on Wednesday night. The police have admitted them to hospital, SP Rural Trigun Bisen said. The ambulance was coming from Noida towards Agra in which mostly people from West Bengal were travelling, he said, adding that the accident took place around 12.30 am near milestone number 86 of Yamuna Expressway in Surir Kotwali area.
In view of the reduced visibility due to dense fog, the Basic Shiksha Adhikari (BSA) on the directives of the District Magistrate, has changed the timings of the schools. Schools from class one to eight in Mathura will open at 10 am and close at 3 pm. In Azamgarh, five people were injured after the car they were travelling in collided with a stranded pickup van in Atraulia police station area of the district.
SHO Ravindra Rai said, "The accident occurred around 11 pm on Wednesday. The injured have been admitted to hospital." Dense fog also affected the movement of public transport in the state. Uttar Pradesh State Transport Corporation (UPSRTC) Regional Manager in Baghpat Lokesh Rajput said, "We have rescheduled the timing of buses due to dense fog. Orders have also been issued to halt movement of buses in the night amidst dense fog to avoid accidents."
