Bhatkal: A 55-year-old motorcyclist was killed on the spot after a truck allegedly rammed his motorcycle from behind on National Highway 66 near Basti Junction in Murdeshwar, Bhatkal taluk, on Wednesday afternoon. The fatal accident triggered a massive public protest, with residents blaming the allegedly unscientific and substandard design of the four-lane highway for the recurring accidents at the location.
The deceased has been identified as Krishna Shaniyar Naik (55), a resident of Sabpatti, near Murdeshwar.
According to sources, Krishna Shaniyar Naik was riding from Bhatkal towards Murdeshwar and had stopped at Basti Junction to cross the highway when a speeding truck approaching from behind crashed into his motorcycle. The impact threw him onto the road, and he was run over by the truck, resulting in his instantaneous death.
Soon after the accident, hundreds of local residents gathered at the spot and launched a protest, alleging that the faulty planning and poor engineering of the NH-66 four-laning project had made the junction highly accident-prone. Protesters prevented authorities from removing both the motorcycle trapped beneath the truck and the victim's body.
The demonstrators demanded that senior officials of the National Highway authorities or IRB Infrastructure, the concessionaire executing the highway project, visit the accident site and hold discussions with the public before the body was shifted to the hospital. They also sought concrete assurances that corrective measures would be taken to prevent further fatal accidents at the location.
On receiving information, police from Murdeshwar and Bhatkal rushed to the scene. Senior officials, including the Deputy Superintendent of Police (DySP), Assistant Commissioner, Tahsildar, and other authorities, also reached the spot and held talks with the protesters. An engineer from IRB later arrived at the site, following which the protesters called off their agitation. The victim's body was subsequently shifted to the Government Hospital for post-mortem examination