2 women farm workers killed in accident near Alephata

Pune: Two women farm workers were killed and at least 25 others suffered injuries after a pickup truck they were travelling in collided with a tanker on Tuesday morning at Dumbarwadi village near Alephata on the Kalyan-Nagar highway, about 95km from the city.The pickup truck was ferrying the victims towards Alephata. It collided head on with the tanker coming from the opposite side around 8.30am, the Pune Rural Police said. The police identified the deceased women as Vandana Ganesh Hillam (20) and Manda Shivram Hillam (35), both from Murbad taluka in Thane district. The injured workers were treated at the primary health centre in Otur and a few private hospitals. An officer from the Otur Police said the two women were killed on the spot. The drivers of both the vehicles and other workers in the pickup truck suffered injuries. "Residents of nearby areas shifted the injured victims to hospitals. Two suffered severe injuries and are in hospital. The others were released after treatment," he said.The officer said most of the farm workers commuting in the pickup truck stayed in villages on the border of Thane and Pune districts in Murbad taluka. They were picked up from the Bankarphata area in Junnar taluka. "The pickup truck collided with the milk tanker, heading towards Malshej Ghat, on the Kalyan-Nagar highway," he said.He said the accident caused traffic congestion on the Kalyan-Nagar Road. The traffic movement resumed after the police shifted the vehicles to the roadside. A case of accidental death was registered with the Otur Police, the officer said.