Bhubaneswar: A young couple was killed after a speeding car hit them from behind in Odisha’s Koraput district on Tuesday, following which police intercepted the vehicle and detained its four occupants, including the driver, officials said.
The accident occurred near a petrol pump in Nandapur block when the couple was heading towards a nearby agricultural field. The car, allegedly travelling at high speed from Semiliguda, rammed into them from behind and fled the scene.
The deceased were identified as Parshu Hantal (20), a resident of Kumbiguda village under Banur panchayat, and his wife Jema Pangi (21), a native of Kenduguda village in neighbouring Malkangiri district.
The injured couple was rushed to the Nandapur Community Health Centre, where doctors declared both of them dead.
Following the incident, Nandapur police station IIC Trinath Totapadia examined CCTV footage to identify the vehicle involved in the accident. The footage reportedly showed a car with damage to both sides of its front windscreen heading towards Lamtaput.
Acting on the information, police teams from Nandapur, Lamtaput and Machhkund launched a joint operation and intercepted the vehicle near Changudipada village along the Lamtaput block border.
All four occupants of the car, including the driver and co-passengers, were detained for questioning.
During preliminary interrogation, the detained persons reportedly told police that they had come from Nayagada and were on a sightseeing trip to Rani Duduma and Duduma waterfalls.
The couple had married around one-and-a-half years ago and were living near the Bhairabi Temple in Nandapur. They earned their livelihood through sharecropping and daily-wage labour.
The bodies have been kept in the mortuary of the Nandapur Community Health Centre.
Police are questioning the detained persons and investigating the circumstances surrounding the accident.
