Three men died on the spot and 11 people were injured in a collision between a van and a sand-laden lorry on the National Highway 4 near Haraganahalli in the taluk in the wee hours of Friday.
The dead, all residents of Bangalore, have been identified as Chandru, 40, of Rajarajeshwari Nagar, Venkatesh, 53, and Ganganna, 53, of Mallathalli, police said.
Among the 11 injured, the condition of Saravana and Maruti is said to be serious. The injured have been admitted to the district hospital. All of them were employees of Karnataka Vidyuth Karkhane in Bangalore.
The collision occurred when the 140-member group was on its way to Goa while the lorry was on its way to Bangalore from Kumarapatna. The driver and the cleaner of the lorry are absconding.
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