The tree branch fell on the autorickshaw at Jayanagar in Bengaluru on Wednesday.
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Less than three weeks after the death of an autorickshaw driver due to a tree fall in the city, another driver was killed on Wednesday after a large tree branch fell on his vehicle in Jayanagar.
The deceased has been identified as Kaleem Khan, 60, resident of Padarayanapura. He was riding his autorickshaw on 16th main road in Jayanagar 4th block on Wednesday at 8.20 a.m. when the branch of a Gulmohar tree fell. As the roof of the autorickshaw gave way, the branch hit Kaleem’s head, injuring him. Though he was rushed to a nearby hospital and from there to NIMHANS, he succumbed to the injuries later in the day.
The branch fell even though there was no rain or wind. A senior forest official in BBMP said the tree was abnormally tall, probably competing with high-rise buildings for light. The branch that fell was thin and weak, the official said. He also said that they had observed many branches of tall Gulmohar trees falling this season.
The civic body has announced compensation of ₹5 lakh to the next of kin of the deceased.
Two deaths
With Wednesday’s incident, a total of seven persons have been injured and two persons, both auto drivers, were killed in tree and branch fall cases in the city this monsoon. On August 16, a 49-year-old auto driver Shivarudraiah succumbed to head injury after a tree fell on the vehicle at Vijayanagar. On Sunday, a couple in a car was injured when a tree trunk fell on two cars on Central Street Road. In all the three incidents, trees and branches fell on vehicles when there was neither rain nor wind.
Published – September 05, 2024 12:15 am IST
