Mumbaikar hurt in Indore accident unaware 10 dead

On Tuesday evening, 10 Mumbaikars died in a road accident in Madhya Pradesh when their Tempo Trax collided with a truck on the Indore-Ujjain national highway. Three, who were severely injured, were admitted to the Aurobindo Hospital in Indore.

One of the injured, Arvind Badrecha, a resident of Marine Lines, spoke to MiD DAY from his hospital bed today morning.

No recollections
"I'm not aware of the condition of my friends. I don't know where they are admitted or whether they are alive.

All I remember is that we had some food at a restaurant around 5 pm. All 12 of us, were having snacks at the
dhaba on the way from Indore to Ujjain. We got back into the Trax when suddenly a truck came from the opposite direction and banged into our vehicle around 5.30 pm. When I gained consciousness, I found myself lying here in the hospital," said Badrecha.

Shocked
He added, "I have injured my neck and I'm not able to move. I don't know who got me here. I gained consciousness in the morning and all that I know is that the driver of the truck has run away. My family has been informed and will be coming soon here soon."

Meanwhile, in Mumbai, relatives and friends of the dead are unable to come to terms with the tragedy.

Said Jaswanti Badrecha (51), Arvind's sister-in-law, who lives in Chandanvadi, "This group used to holiday together, every year, in different places and sometimes, even twice a year. They were a very close-knit group and lived life to the fullest. They enjoyed life kingsize. We can't believe so many are dead.''

"Arvind called us last night and told us of the tragedy.

He sounded very feeble," added Arvind's brother Govind.

Jaswanti lost her son's father-in-law, Kishore Poddar, and her uncle lost his son, Bharat, in the accident.

From Marine Lines
The 12 Mumbaikars, a mix of friends and relatives, are from Marine Lines.
u00a0
They were on a tour of Madhya Pradesh for a week and had booked the tempo at Sharada Travels in Indore, from where they went to Mandu. They had left for Ujjain yesterday and were returning after visiting the Mahakal temple.

The dead have been identified as Kishore Poddar, Bharat Poddar, Ashok Masani Dayaram Pawar, Tarsanbhai, Basant Badrecha, Laxmidar and Kiran. One person remains unidentified. The driver of their Trax, Narayan Rameshwar Patidar, died in the accident.