Four people lost their lives and five others were injured after a Maruti Eeco van travelling in the wrong direction on the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway crashed head-on into a truck near Vadodara late on Saturday night.
The accident occurred around 11.30 pm near Samiyala village on the outskirts of Vadodara. According to police, the victims were on their way from Ampad village to a temple in Mehsana to fulfil a religious vow.
Preliminary investigations revealed that the van driver, Narendrasinh Rathod, mistakenly entered the Mumbai-bound lane of the expressway instead of the Ahmedabad-bound carriageway. After reportedly driving several kilometres, he realised the mistake and allegedly made a U-turn, continuing in the wrong direction on the same stretch of road.
The van eventually collided head-on with a truck near a toll plaza within the Laxmipura village limits, resulting in a devastating crash.
The deceased have been identified as Gauri Solanki, Dalpat Mewada, Narendrasinh Rathod and Prahlad Barad.
Five other occupants of the van sustained injuries and were rushed to a hospital for treatment. The injured have been identified as Kanu Mewada, Ramesh Solanki, Laxmi Solanki and Dharmishtha Barad, while the identity of one injured person was not immediately known.
Police have registered a case under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Motor Vehicles Act. Further investigation into the incident is underway.