Eight engineering students from Tamil Nadu lost their lives in a tragic road accident in Kerala’s Thrissur district late Friday night. The youths were travelling in a car that rammed into a parked lorry just after 11:40 pm near Panambikkunnu in Kaipamangalam, when their vehicle collided with the rear of the stationary truck on NH-66.
## Accident Details
Authorities say the lorry had been parked illegally on the right side of the highway near a barricaded diversion created due to road construction. The car, coming from Guruvayur towards Kodungallur, appeared to be travelling at high speed. The driver allegedly failed to spot the diversion or the barricade and crashed into the rear of the parked vehicle. Six of the students died instantly, while two were declared dead on arrival at a nearby hospital.
## Victims and Their Backgrounds
All eight victims were pursuing engineering studies in Dindigul, Tamil Nadu. They were travelling together toward Kodungallur via NH-66 when tragedy struck. The students have been identified as Surya, Yuvasanjith, Joshua, Murali, Jeeva, Santhosh, Prasanna, and Vishva. Surya, Yuvasanjith, Joshua, Murali, and Jeeva hailed from Dindigul. Santhosh and Prasanna were from Madurai, while Vishva came from Salem.
## Rescue Operation and Aftermath
Rescuers, fire personnel, local residents, and police worked together to extract the mangled car, which had to be cut open during the operation. The victims’ bodies were moved to the mortuary at Thrissur Medical College. Postmortem examinations were carried out there; simultaneously, hospital authorities arranged for ambulances to deliver the bodies to the students’ respective hometowns.
## Police Investigation and Legal Action
The Kaipamangalam police have filed a First Information Report (FIR) under Section 105 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (cognizable offence of culpable homicide) against the lorry driver. The driver fled the scene immediately following the crash and remains at large. Investigations have already identified the vehicle’s owner.
District authorities are also examining the roles of highway officials and the contractor responsible for diversion signage. Thrissur Rural District Police Chief Mohammad Nadeemuddin stated that while the preliminary assessment points to the fault of the lorry driver, authorities will further scrutinise whether proper signboards and warning signals were in place at the diversion site.
## Statements from Law Enforcement
According to Chief Mohammad Nadeemuddin, “It is definitely a mistake on the part of the lorry driver. An FIR has already been registered.” He added that further legal action will be taken against any party found negligent, including contractors or highway authorities involved in safety measures.
The Kodungallur Deputy Superintendent of Police has been appointed as the investigating officer for this case, underscoring the severity with which police view the incident.
## Family Reactions and Context
Some families of the deceased were unaware that their children had travelled to Kerala. Identification was possible thanks to student identity cards recovered from the wreckage. Relatives disclosed that Santhosh had recently bought a car and the group initially intended to travel in that vehicle, but since the registration process was incomplete, they rented another car for the trip.
## Looking Forward: Safety and Enforcement
Following this incident, authorities emphasised the urgent need for strict enforcement against illegal vehicle parking and stronger safety measures at construction zones. Chief Nadeemuddin mentioned that a Highway Police patrol unit has already been stationed in the area where the crash occurred. The investigation will also evaluate whether warning signboards were properly installed at the diversion site and whether highway authorities and contractors fulfilled their responsibilities.
—
This article is AI-generated content. Please verify the information independently before taking any action based on this article. before returning it. Do not rewrite, summarize, rephrase, shorten, expand, or make any changes to the text content. Only remove all URLs, hyperlinks, website addresses, source links, ChatGPT referral links, RSS source links, tracking parameters (including utm_source, utm_medium, utm_campaign, and other UTM tags), and any attribution to the original news source. Preserve the text exactly as written. Return only the cleaned content with no links, tracking parameters, or source references.
