One man died and at least six persons were injured after being hit by an allegedly speeding car that flouted a traffic signal at the Chingrihata intersection on Saturday afternoon.
A 52-year-old Salt Lake resident, who was at the wheel of the Hyundai i20, was arrested. The man was identified by police as Chirotosh Roy, who owns and runs a pet clinic in south Calcutta.
“He lost control of the car at the Chingrihata intersection and first hit a bicycle before hitting at least six pedestrians, one of whom died at a hospital off EM Bypass,” said an officer of Bidhannagar South police station.
The injured were taken to a nearby private hospital. One of them, Mustaq Ahmed, a resident of Kolaghat in Howrah, was declared brought dead at the hospital, the police said. Till Saturday night, it was unclear if he was the cyclist hit by Roy’s car.
The accident happened around 4pm, the police said.
“Roy was headed towards Salt Lake from Science City on the Ultadanga-bound flank of EM Bypass. The car driven by Roy was moving at a high speed and did not slow down even as the signal at the crossing turned amber. A cyclist also started to cross the road as soon as the light turned amber,” said a traffic policeman who was posted there.
According to the traffic rules, a motorist should slow down the moment the light turns amber, unless the car has already crossed the stop line.
“The car first hit the cyclist, after which pedestrians started shouting. Roy seemed to have panicked and then made a sharp U-turn to get onto Salt Lake Bypass that leads to Nicco Park. In a bid to escape from the spot, he hit six pedestrians — some on the pavement and some waiting on the road,” said the officer.
Roy was intercepted by a police team after his car came to a halt on the stretch leading to Nicco Park.
Roy’s wife and their driver were in the car. Roy is said to have told the cops that he did not drive the car on a regular basis.
In Calcutta, thousands of motorists misread the amber for green every day and put their own lives and that of others at risk, police officers said.
“Ideally, the moment you see the light turn amber, you should slow down, unless you have already crossed the stop line. But the tendency is to press the accelerator instead of the brakes. Most vehicles that continue to move even after the light turns amber at busy crossings cannot make it to the safe zone before it turns red. Hence, they become culpable for prosecution,” said an officer of the traffic department.
Any vehicle that has yet to cross the stop line and starts accelerating after seeing the light turn amber gets only a few seconds before the signal turns red. “If your vehicle is crossing the intersection when the signal is red, it is an offence and attracts a penalty,” the officer said.
The Chingrihata intersection is one of the busiest in Calcutta. “Apart from motorists, cyclists and pedestrians waiting to cross the road start moving the moment the signal turns amber,” said a traffic sergeant.
Those injured in Saturday’s accident were identified by the cops as Prince Paswan, 14, Girija Devi Paswan, 32, Souvik Adhikary, 35, Bhola Das, 27, Arup Dalui, 31 and Manabendra Roy, 37.
“Adhikary is scheduled to undergo a surgery. All others have been treated and discharged,” said an official of the hospital.
Roy has been charged with rash driving and causing death due to negligence, said the officer of Bidhannagar south police station.