According to Nehru Nagar police, the accident took place around 12 noon. One Mahadev Appa, 31, was speeding down the highway in his truck when he apparently lost control of his vehicle and rammed into an autorickshaw parked by the roadside. Sonu Gupta, 14, son of a vendor, who was sitting in the rickshaw, was killed on the spot.

Shivaji Adavkar, 45, the driver of the rickshaw, who was standing nearby escaped unhurt.

“The truck was travelling at such a speed that the autorickshaw was dragged nearly 150 yards, where it rammed into two more rickshaws and a two-wheeler. The driver of the second rickshaw, Vijay Gupta, was badly injured. He has been admitted to Sion Hospital. The driver of the third rickshaw, Behnilal Bind, 27, escaped with minor injuries as he was thrown out of the rickshaw by the impact,” said senior police inspector U Suryavanshi.

The other deceased has been identified as Chandrakant Bharkumbe, 40, a resident of Siddharth Colony in Chembur, who was riding a two-wheeler when the truck hit him.

Waiting at the police station to give his statement to the police, Bind said,

“It’s my good fortune that I was thrown out of the rickshaw when the truck hit my vehicle.”