12 August,2025 06:21 PM IST | Pune | mid-day online correspondent
The police on Tuesday arrested the driver of the van, police said. Representational Pic/File
The police on Tuesday arrested the driver of the van which fell into a ditch in Pune district of Maharashtra, killing ten women devotees heading to a temple a day ago, an official said, reported the PTI.
He has been booked him for culpable homicide not amounting to murder, the official said.
The van driver, Hrushikesh Karande, has been charged with culpable homicide not amounting to murder, committing acts endangering life or personal safety of others and being involved in illegal transportation, said an officer from the Pimpri-Chinchwad police, according to the PTI.
Ten women on their way to a temple were killed and 30 others injured after a pick-up van packed with passengers fell off the road on a hilly terrain and plunged into a ditch on Monday afternoon in Pune district, police had said.
The vehicle carrying over 40 passengers, most of them women and children, veered off the road and plunged 25 to 30 feet after it failed to climb an incline - possibly due to overloading -- and rolled back down before toppling into the ditch at around 1 pm.
The victims, who hailed from Papalwadi village, were headed to Shree Kshetra Mahadev Kundeshwar Temple in Khed tehsil in the western Maharashtra district to mark the auspicious Monday of the ongoing Shravan month when the accident took place near Pait village.
The temple, a popular pilgrimage site in Khed taluka, is located around 18 km west of the Pune-Nashik Highway and surrounded by villages such as Kohinde Budruk, Talwade, and Vashere.
Kundeshwar Mandir attracts hundreds of devotees on Shravan Mondays. The scenic hilltop location also draws tourists. Police are investigating whether overloading, speeding, or driver negligence caused the crash.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and Pune District Guardian Minister Ajit Pawar called the Pait-Khed mishap "extremely tragic and painful," expressing condolences to the bereaved.
"The administration, police, and health department launched rescue operations immediately. All injured have been admitted to nearby government and private hospitals for urgent treatment," he said. Pawar instructed officials to ensure the best possible medical care and speedy relief.
The state government has announced Rs 4 lakh financial assistance for the families of the deceased.
(with PTI inputs)
