7 injured as truck rams into car, causes 18-vehicle pile-up on Samruddhi Expressway

At least seven people were injured and 18 vehicles were damaged in a chain collision after a truck rammed into a car on Mumbai-Nagpur Samruddhi Expressway in Buldhana district on Friday morning, police said.

NCP (SP) leader and former Maharashtra minister Rajesh Tope said in a social media post that his car was standing in an adjacent lane when the accident took place.

He was travelling from Nagpur to Jalna. An overturned cement mixer trolley had blocked the Mumbai-bound carriageway, forcing several vehicles to stop, he said.

"Suddenly, a steel-laden truck came speeding from behind. The driver lost control and rammed into the vehicles standing in the queue. A vehicle standing immediately beside mine was hit from behind," Tope said.

He put the number of injured at 35, but a senior police official said that only four people suffered grievous injuries and three others had minor injuries.

The pile-up took place at 'chainage 321' (321 km from Nagpur) near Dusarbhi toll point on the Mumbai-bound lane at around 11 am.

The truck hit a car from behind, completely wrecking it. It led to other vehicles in the queue colliding with each other, the police official said.

Tope said in his a post on X that he helped rescue the injured and ensured that they were rushed to hospital.

He also expressed concern over increasing accidents on the Expressway and said the government should take urgent preventive measures.