An elderly woman standing along a road waiting to cross over was fatally hit by a motorcycle on Prince Anwar Shah Road early on Tuesday night.
A 19-year-old college student, Harinder Singh, has been arrested for allegedly driving the bike in a rash and negligent manner, leading to the woman’s death.
Police said Mira Das, 67, a resident of Vivek Nagar in Garfa, was waiting to cross the road in front of KK Memorial Club when a speeding motorcycle hit her around 8.30pm on Tuesday. Das suffered multiple injuries and was taken to a hospital along EM Bypass, where she died on Wednesday morning.
The two-wheeler was intercepted and Singh, a resident of Naskar Para Lane in Garfa, was arrested. “The accused is a BCom first-year student at a city college. Initially, a case of rash and negligent driving was initiated against him. Later, after the death of the victim, he has been charged with causing death due to negligence,” said an officer of Garfa police station.
Last year, a 23-year-old youth allegedly driving a Volkswagen Polo in an inebriated state had killed a cyclist and injured a pedestrian on Prince Anwar Shah Road. The accused, booked for culpable homicide not amounting to murder, is in judicial custody.
Officers said Singh was not drunk and his documents were in order. “The offence of driving under the influence of alcohol attracts a greater penalty,” said an officer of the fatal squad of the traffic department.
According to records at Lalbazar, two-wheelers are responsible for a large number of fatal accidents. Last year, of the 201 people who had died in road accidents, the death of at least 20 was caused by two-wheelers.
As many as 64 two-wheeler riders and pillion riders lost their lives in road accidents last year.