Eastern Peripheral Expressway accident: In a tragic accident on the recently inaugurated Eastern Peripheral Expressway, seven members of a family were killed and nine others injured in an accident on Tuesday. Police said that this incident happened as the driver of their pick-up van fell asleep at the wheel. The accident took place in Haryana’s Palwal district when the family was on its way from Mohali to Mathura. As per Waseem Akram, Superintendent of Police, Palwal, there was negligence on part of the driver. The driver was feeling sleepy and as he continued to drive, he fell asleep at the wheel, the SP added. The driver, who survived, told the police that the accident took place at 4:30 am and a container truck could have hit the van. Passengers sitting in the rear portion of the car were killed. The injured are undergoing treatment at hospitals in Delhi, Mathura and Palwal.
According to The Indian Express, the deceased have been identified as Devi Singh, his sister-in-law Om Vati, Om Vati’s son Jatin, Devi Singh’s nephew Vijay Pal, Vijay Pal’s daughter Seema, Ananya and a family friends, Vijay Pal. The family was going to their native village Shayamnagla in Mathura district to attend the wedding of Devi Singh’s daughter Pinki which was to be held on June 20.
This is the first accident on Eastern Peripheral Expressway that was inaugurated by PM Narendra Modi on May 27. The Eastern Peripheral Expressway is India’s first smart and green 6-lane highway. The highway not only decongests Delhi-NCR (National Capital Region) and connect crucial areas of Palwal, Gautam Budh Nagar, Faridabad and Ghaziabad, it’s also an eco-friendly highway. The highway has been made in record time of 500 days as against a target of 910 days. The Eastern Peripheral Expressway helps to divert around 2 lakh vehicles passing through the national capital to this bypass.
The expressway, which is also known as KGP expressway (Kundli-Ghaziabad-Palwal), provides signal-free connectivity between Palwal, Gautam Budh Nagar, Faridabad and Ghaziabad. The 135-km Eastern Peripheral Expressway is part of the bigger Peripheral Expressway Project that comprises two highways – EPE and Western Peripheral Expressway. The Peripheral Expressway Project aims at connecting NH-1 and NH-2 from the Western and Eastern sides of Delhi.