An 18-year-old college student was killed and her friend injured after their motorcycle came into contact with a dumper on Mumbai’s Western Express Highway in Borivali East on Wednesday afternoon, police said. The Kasturba Marg Police have registered a case against the dumper driver for rash driving and negligence.
The crash took place at about 1.45 pm on the northbound arm of the Western Express Highway. The deceased was identified as Srisha Shetty, a first-year commerce student at a Kandivali-based college. She was travelling as a pillion passenger with her friend, Nitin Nagwekar, also 18, who was riding the motorcycle.
According to the police, the two students were returning home from college and lived in the same suburb. The dumper was moving in the centre of the road when the motorcycle came into contact with its left rear side. The impact caused both students to fall from the motorcycle.
Shetty suffered serious head injuries in the crash, while Nagwekar was also injured. Members of the public and others at the scene took the two teenagers to Babasaheb Ambedkar Hospital in Kandivali for treatment. Shetty later succumbed to her injuries, police said.
The dumper driver was identified as Saddam Shaikh, 31. The police subsequently booked him in connection with the crash and served him a notice. The case concerns allegations of rash driving and negligence, and the reported police action does not by itself establish the driver’s guilt.
The incident highlights the exposure faced by two-wheeler users on one of Mumbai’s busiest arterial roads, where motorcycles and heavy commercial vehicles share the carriageway. In this case, the police account places the contact between the motorcycle and the dumper’s left rear side while both vehicles were moving on the highway.
The available police account does not provide further details about the speed of either vehicle, road conditions, traffic movement, helmet use or whether any other factors contributed to the collision. The investigation will determine the circumstances surrounding the crash and the responsibility of those involved.
The Kasturba Marg Police have registered the case and issued the dumper driver a notice. Further action will depend on the investigation into the collision and the injuries sustained by the two students.
