Bhubaneswar: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik expressed grief over death of eight persons in a road accident near Ghatagaon and announced an ex-gratia of Rs 3 lakh each for the next of kin of the deceased.
Besides extending condolences to the bereaved families, the CM also ordered free medical treatment to the 12 injured and wished them speedy recovery.
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Eight persons died and 12 others sustained injuries when the van in which they were travelling crashed into a stationary truck on NH-20 near Balijodi, around 3 km from the Tarani Temple in Ghatagaon, in Odisha’s Keonjhar district early on Friday.
The victims and injured were from Digapahandi in Ganjam district and were on their way to the temple when the accident took place around 5 am. While seven people died on the spot, another succumbed at a hospital. Condition of two among the injured is stated to be critical.
Incidentally, the tragic mishap occurred on first day of the Zero Fatality Week, a campaign launched by the Odisha transport department to curb road accident deaths.
