Jaipur: Three women from the same family were killed and 13 others injured after a Tempo Traveller carrying pilgrims collided head-on with a trailer truck near the Bobasar overpass in Rajasthan’s Churu district on Monday, police said.

Pilgrims were travelling from Salasar to Pushkar

The accident occurred in the Sujangarh police station area when the Tempo Traveller, carrying 17 members of a family from Kolkata, was travelling from the Salasar Balaji Temple to Pushkar.

According to police, the trailer rammed into the Tempo Traveller near the Bobasar overpass, crushing the front portion of the vehicle.

The impact was so severe that three women died on the spot, while 13 others sustained injuries.

Rescue operation launched, injured shifted to hospital

Local residents and passersby rushed to the accident site after hearing cries for help and alerted the police.

Rescue teams, with the help of locals, extricated the injured passengers and recovered the bodies from the mangled vehicle.

Sujangarh Sub-Divisional Magistrate Om Prakash Verma and Deputy Superintendent of Police Darjaram reached the spot to supervise the rescue operation.

The injured were admitted to Government Bagaria Hospital in Sujangarh, where several are undergoing treatment for serious injuries and remain under close medical observation.

Police begin investigation

Police said all the victims were residents of Kolkata, West Bengal, and had hired the Tempo Traveller for a pilgrimage to prominent religious sites in Rajasthan.

After offering prayers at the Salasar Balaji Temple, the family was travelling to Pushkar when the accident occurred.

The bodies of the deceased have been kept in the hospital mortuary for post-mortem examination, and their relatives have been informed.

Traffic on the highway was briefly affected following the collision before police cleared the damaged vehicles and restored normal movement.

Police have registered a case and launched an investigation into the cause of the accident.