5 Pandharpur pilgrims among 8 killed in accidents

Two separate accidents claimed lives of eight persons including 3 of a family in the state on Friday.

Five persons on a pilgrimage to Pandharpur were killed and seven others injured when an SUV they were traveling rear-ended a tractor near Sangola in Solapur district of Maharashtra in the early hours of Friday.

The victims have been identified as Krishna Vaman Kanbarkar (50), Mahadev Kanbarkar (48), Laxman Ambewadikar (50), Arun Datta Mutkekar (38), natives of Mandoli village in Belagavi taluk, and Aadha Devappa Patil (40), the driver of the SUV and a resident of Hangarga village. Injured have been admitted to local hospital. Sources said, the victims had left Mandoli on Thursday night for Pandharpur, the abode of Vittal and Rukmini, to take part in Karthik Ekadashi puja. The driver of the SUV lost control and rear-ended the bricks-laden tractor in the wee hours.

Five persons bled to death on the spot. Police had a tough time in extracting the bodies from the mangled remains of the car.

3 of a family die In another accident, three of a family died on the spot as the car in which they were traveling collided with a private bus near the Paper Mill at Varkodu village on Mysuru-T Narasipur Road.

Deceased are: Mohan (50), his wife Uma (41) and son Prajwal (22), residents of Bengaluru. Daughter of Mohan, Pratheeksha, 19, has sustained severe injuries. The family was on its way to Ooty after attending a housewarming ceremony near Varkodu.