Flood-affected couple mowed down by pick-up van in Bihar; Two arrested

A couple taking shelter inside a makeshift hutment beside National Highway 527B after being displaced by floods was mowed down by a speeding pick-up van in Bihar's Darbhanga district on Tuesday, police said.

The pick-up van's driver and his helper were arrested and the vehicle was seized, they said.

The incident took place near Koylaasthan village in Keoti police station area early in the morning when the couple was sleeping inside the tarpaulin hutment, Keoti Circle Officer Ajit Kumar Jha.

The pick-up van driver lost control over the vehicle and rammed it into the makeshift hutment, he said.

The deceased were identified as Surendra Yadav and his wife Premsheela Devi, both aged between 45 and 50, the officer said.

READ: Bihar: Floodwaters enter new areas, hit a million more people; 24.5 lakh affected in 11 districts

They died while being taken to the Darbhanga Medical College and Hospital (DMCH), Jha said.

The couple had erected the hutment beside the national highway after floodwaters entered their Koylaasthan village, he said.

Angry locals blocked the highway after the incident, following which an ex-gratia amount of Rs four lakh each was given to the kin of the deceased under provisions of the Disaster Management Act, the officer said.

The village headman has been asked to pay Rs 3,000 each to the kin of the deceased for cremation under the Kabir Antyeshti Yojana, he said.

Traffic movement was restored on the highway after locals lifted the blockade following the payment of the ex- gratia amount, Keoti police station SHO Shiv Kumar Yadav said.

The bodies have been sent to DMCH for postmortem examination, he added.