A fatal accident between a truck and a state transport bus in Gadchiroli on Wednesday allegedly led to an incident of arson in which 18 trucks that had come to a halt on that route were set ablaze. Police said four persons, including a teenager, were killed and three critically injured when a truck operating for the Surjagad iron ore mine rammed into a bus, travelling from Etapalli to Aheri, at 9 am. Later, police added, a mob of 1,500 came from nearby villages and set fire to trucks that had come to a halt on that route due to the accident. “The accident took place around 9 am near Etapalli town. For about two hours, the situation was normal. But later, a mob of about 1,500 came from nearby villages and set fire to several trucks that had come to a halt following the accident. About 14 trucks were gutted,” Additional Superintendent of Police Hari Balaji told The Indian Express. He added, “After the mishap, the other trucks stopped and their drivers ran away taking their keys with them. That’s why the trucks couldn’t be removed.” Those who were killed in the accident were identified as Amol Gawde (17), Shyamala Gajbhiye (47), Prakash Ambade (50) and Manjusha Kurpe (52). Among the injured is the driver of the bus, Hemant Pulliwar. They have been shifted to Gadchiroli and Chandrapur hospital Surjagad mine belongs to the Lloyd Metals and Energy Limited and is being opposed by Naxals ever since it started its operation more than two years ago. In December 2017, Naxals had set ablaze 80 trucks at the mine site, following which the company was provided police security. However, the mine hasn't been able to operate beyond seven days in any given month. Sources said, "in the past three months, excavation happened for two days and transport of the material for about three days after that as no security is available on all the days." Balaji said, "a police post has been sanctioned just about a week ago for Surjagad but manpower sanction, too, has to be there. We have to man a corridor of about 65 km between the mine and Alapalli town for which we require 750 personnel. There are five posts in between. So, for a jawan from each of those posts, it means a daily walk of about 20 km. Naturally, it can't be provided on daily basis. Yet, we manage it for at least seven days every month. If we do it daily, we will not be able to do other operations like area domination."
