On Tuesday morning at 8:45 AM, a big tractor that was loaded with sugarcane tipped over on the Pune-Nashik highway near Wagholi. This sad accident happened during busy traffic and resulted in three people dying and seven others getting hurt. The accident shows that there are serious problems with tractor safety and farming rules in Maharashtra, where many tractors used for transporting goods aren't safe.
The main victim, Rajesh Patil, who's 42 years old and a local farmer, was driving the tractor when it lost control on a sharp turn. This happened about 2.3 kilometers from the Wagholi toll plaza. Police reports say the tractor was too heavy, exceeding the allowed weight by 1,850 kilograms. This made the accident worse.
Two workers, Santosh Mane (38) and Prakash Jadhav (45), who were sitting on top of the sugarcane, also died.
Emergency teams arrived quickly, within 12 minutes, with three ambulances and a rescue vehicle from the Pune Fire Department. The injured were taken to Sancheti Hospital, where four of them are in serious condition. Doctors say three survivors have multiple fractures, while the others have minor injuries.
Local officials are now investigating to see if any laws were broken. This is the seventh major tractor accident in Pune this year, which is a 40% increase from last year.
The Regional Transport Office is checking all agricultural vehicles in the area, especially those that are overloaded. Early checks show that 62% of tractors don't have important safety features.
In response to this tragic event, the Maharashtra State Government is creating a special team to make sure farming vehicles follow the rules. They'll start a plan that includes safety training for tractor drivers, vehicle checks, and putting GPS systems in all commercial agricultural vehicles by December 2024.
