<p>Mumbai: At least 18 people were killed and several others injured in three separate road accidents reported from different parts of Maharashtra within a span of 24 hours, once again raising concerns over road safety, speeding and hazardous driving conditions on highways and ghat sections across the state.</p><p>In one of the accidents, eight persons were killed after a sports utility vehicle (SUV) plunged into a nearly 900-foot-deep gorge in the Ambenali Ghat section on the Mahabaleshwar-Poladpur road in Raigad district late Sunday night.</p><p>Officials said the victims, most of them from Satara district, were travelling through the steep ghat stretch when the driver allegedly lost control of the vehicle. Highway police, assisted by local trekking groups and the Pratapgad Search and Rescue Team, launched a rescue operation soon after receiving information about the accident.</p><p>Rescue efforts were hampered by the difficult terrain and the depth of the gorge. Authorities said all eight occupants died due to the severity of the fall.</p><p>The deceased were identified as Ritesh Lokhande (22), Suhas Lokhande (20), Utkarsh Shingte (21), Nikhil Shingte (25), Mahesh Pawar (25), Aditya Salunkhe (21), Rajesh Katkar (35), all residents of Satara district, and Ansh Chavan (19) from Ratnagiri district.</p>.Maharashtra records highest number of 24,171 cases in crimes against children; tops charts with 12,994 kidnapping cases in 2024.<p>In another major accident, six people were killed and at least 26 others injured in a chain collision on the Mumbai-Agra Highway near Laling Ghat in Dhule district early Monday morning. </p><p>According to officials, the incident began after a dumper truck collided with another truck on the highway. As toll plaza employees and local residents gathered to assist the injured and clear the damaged vehicles, a speeding passenger bus travelling from Madhya Pradesh allegedly lost control and crashed into the accident site.</p><p>The collision crushed several vehicles and claimed multiple lives, including that of a toll plaza employee who was assisting in rescue operations. Police and emergency teams later shifted the injured to hospital for treatment.</p><p>In the third incident, four people were killed after a State Transport (ST) bus collided with a two-wheeler in Pune district’s Junnar taluka on Monday.</p><p>Police said the accident took place near Dingore village when the two-wheeler reportedly came in front of the bus, resulting in a fatal collision. The victims sustained critical injuries and later succumbed during treatment.</p><p>Police have registered separate cases in all three accidents, and further investigations are underway.</p>
<p>Mumbai: At least 18 people were killed and several others injured in three separate road accidents reported from different parts of Maharashtra within a span of 24 hours, once again raising concerns over road safety, speeding and hazardous driving conditions on highways and ghat sections across the state.</p><p>In one of the accidents, eight persons were killed after a sports utility vehicle (SUV) plunged into a nearly 900-foot-deep gorge in the Ambenali Ghat section on the Mahabaleshwar-Poladpur road in Raigad district late Sunday night.</p><p>Officials said the victims, most of them from Satara district, were travelling through the steep ghat stretch when the driver allegedly lost control of the vehicle. Highway police, assisted by local trekking groups and the Pratapgad Search and Rescue Team, launched a rescue operation soon after receiving information about the accident.</p><p>Rescue efforts were hampered by the difficult terrain and the depth of the gorge. Authorities said all eight occupants died due to the severity of the fall.</p><p>The deceased were identified as Ritesh Lokhande (22), Suhas Lokhande (20), Utkarsh Shingte (21), Nikhil Shingte (25), Mahesh Pawar (25), Aditya Salunkhe (21), Rajesh Katkar (35), all residents of Satara district, and Ansh Chavan (19) from Ratnagiri district.</p>.Maharashtra records highest number of 24,171 cases in crimes against children; tops charts with 12,994 kidnapping cases in 2024.<p>In another major accident, six people were killed and at least 26 others injured in a chain collision on the Mumbai-Agra Highway near Laling Ghat in Dhule district early Monday morning. </p><p>According to officials, the incident began after a dumper truck collided with another truck on the highway. As toll plaza employees and local residents gathered to assist the injured and clear the damaged vehicles, a speeding passenger bus travelling from Madhya Pradesh allegedly lost control and crashed into the accident site.</p><p>The collision crushed several vehicles and claimed multiple lives, including that of a toll plaza employee who was assisting in rescue operations. Police and emergency teams later shifted the injured to hospital for treatment.</p><p>In the third incident, four people were killed after a State Transport (ST) bus collided with a two-wheeler in Pune district’s Junnar taluka on Monday.</p><p>Police said the accident took place near Dingore village when the two-wheeler reportedly came in front of the bus, resulting in a fatal collision. The victims sustained critical injuries and later succumbed during treatment.</p><p>Police have registered separate cases in all three accidents, and further investigations are underway.</p>