Two killed in road mishap near Melli

NAMCHI, 01 Sept: In a tragic road mishap two passengers lost their lives while twelve others suffered grievous injuries this morning at Kerabari near Melli under Melli constituency in South Sikkim. The passengers from Siliguri were travelling in a Savari taxi from Siliguri to Namchi when the driver lost control of the vehicle at Kerabari on a steep slope and tumbled off the road around 80 feet below.
According to one of the passengers, on reaching Kerabari at around 10 AM the driver stopped the vehicle at a steep slope after which he had difficulty restarting the vehicle which slid back and tumbled off the road. He also said that overloading was the main reason of the accident as their vehicle could not pull the weight of the overloaded vehicle up the slope.
One passenger died on the spot while one succumbed to injuries at Namchi hospital. Some of the injured were given first aid at Melli PHC and 9 passengers were admitted at Namchi District Hospital.
Among the deceased are Ratan Biswas (Bacchu) of Siliguri who supplies vegetables from Siliguri to Namchi and Sunita Tamang (36) of Kazitar Namchi.   
Those injured in the accident are driver Chandan Kami (Chotu), Phurba Tshering Tamang, Sunil Dhamala, Manoj Kunar Gupta, Vivek Mandal, Bhagrangi Mandal, Avinash Tamang. Sister Nirmala and Sister Powlin of Salleybung Convent School were also seriously injured and have been admitted in Namchi Hospital.
A case has been registered at Melli PS  US 279/337/ 338/ 304A of IPC against the driver of the vehicle. The post mortem of the deceased was conducted at Namchi Hospital and body was handed to the family members of the deceased.
Overloading of taxis is a serious concern that needs to be addressed by the concerned department and police personnel. While the vehicles take on the allotted 10 passengers at the booking counter, the drivers pick up 3-4 passengers on the way. The associations in charge of the booking counters also need to look into this matter to ensure the safety of passengers.
Speaking with this correspondent president Main Line Taxi Driver Association Arjun Rai said that the mainline vehicles are allowed to carry 10 passengers but drivers themselves pick up passengers on the way along with other goods. He also informed that the South West Main Line Taxi Driver Association is calling an emergency meeting on Tuesday to discuss the matter. He added that strict action will be taken against those found overloading their vehicles risking the life of passengers.