BENGALURU: An autorickshaw driver lost his life after a girder collapsed from a trailer around midnight on Tuesday at the service road of Kogilu Cross, along the Bengaluru-Ballari Road (Kempegowda International Airport Road).
The deceased was identified as Khasim, 35, a resident of Hegde Nagar. According to eyewitnesses, the girder fell off the trailer due to the negligence of the trailer driver, who fled the scene after abandoning the vehicle.
Based on preliminary investigation, Yelahanka traffic police said the incident occurred at around 12.10 am. The trailer, bearing registration number KA-01-AM-1910, was taking a U-turn when the autorickshaw (KA-02-AL-4364) arrived at the spot. The trailer was transporting a girder to a metro construction site from Bagalur Cross and was allegedly being driven negligently. The girder, which was not secured properly, collapsed during the turn.
Khasim was in the driver’s seat while the passenger had just stepped out and was paying the fare online. The girder fell on the autorickshaw, crushing Khasim. The passenger escaped unhurt as he was already outside the vehicle, eyewitness Mohammed Adil told the media.
The girder fell after the chain tying it to the trailer snapped. Yelahanka traffic police reached the spot and retrieved the body from the autorickshaw around 2 am. “When we checked the auto, we found Khasim’s details and shared them on WhatsApp to trace his family,” Adil added.
Around 50 people gathered at the spot, expressing anger at metro officials for failing to ensure safety during transportation and for not visiting the scene for over two hours. Locals told the media that the passenger had warned the driver to step out as the girder was collapsing, but he delayed and was crushed to death.
A crane was used to remove the girder, and Yelahanka traffic police are investigating the case.
Chief PRO of BMRCL, B. L. Yeshwanth Chavan, told TOI that the incident occurred while a trailer was transporting a girder near a metro construction site. The Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) is currently building an elevated corridor on Ballari Road as part of the Blue Line project connecting Central Silk Board to Kempegowda International Airport.