‘Reckless’ driving leaves 1 dead in Tripura accident

Agartala: Hundreds of cricket lovers thronged the streets in the city to celebrate India’s victory in the T-20 World Cup. However, the celebrations took a tragic turn when an accident left a youth dead on the spot and another critically injured.
On Saturday, cricket fever had gripped the city, including the police stations and traffic posts, since evening as the Men-in-Blue took on the Proteas in the final.
Restaurants and liquor shops, which usually close by 10 pm, stretched the business hour up to midnight, albeit in a clandestine manner. Giant screens were put up in various parts of the city so that locals could gather together to enjoy the match. People were seen offering prayers and wishing for India’s success.
However, the celebrations were dampened following a social media post at 12.30 am by a medical student of Agartala Govt Medical College (AGMC) about the accident.
He had rescued two youths — Ratul Banik (21) and Roni Sutradhar — from the Ujjayanta palace area in critical condition and rushed them to the hospital.
While passing the area, the medical student said he found a motorbike and a scooty after a collision and two youths lying in pools of blood on the road.
After both the victims were brought to the hospital, the attending doctors declared Ratul dead on arrival, while Roni had sustained severe injuries in the accident.
Police said Ratul Banik was riding the scooty while Roni Sutradhar was on the bike. The accident happened when both riders lost control and collided head-on.
According to many locals, many of the youths were found drinking openly on the road and driving recklessly.
The residents rued that even though the police stations were open, they did not find cops on the streets to control the “unruly” celebrations, including bursting of high-decibel crackers and reckless driving.