A woman and her four-year-old son were killed after a speeding water tanker rammed their two-wheeler near Kopri Naka in Virar on Monday morning, with police arresting the driver and finding that the 17-year-old tanker did not have a fitness certificate.
The family was travelling from Jeevan Nagar in Nalasopara East towards the Jivdani Devi temple when the crash occurred at about 8.45 am, according to Virar police. Dharmendra Pal, 30, was riding the two-wheeler with his wife Kavita Pal, 28, and their sons Aariv, 4, and Aayansh, 7.
Police said the tanker hit the two-wheeler near Kopri Naka, throwing all four family members onto the road. Aariv was in his mother’s arms at the time of the collision. Kavita and Aariv were run over by the tanker and died at the spot, senior inspector Lalu Ture of Virar police station said.
The tanker driver, identified by police as Masher Zuber Ali, 21, was arrested in connection with the crash. The report did not specify the sections invoked or whether the driver was produced before a court.
The vehicle’s lack of a fitness certificate has raised concerns about how an unfit commercial vehicle was operating on Virar’s roads. A fitness certificate is used to establish whether a transport vehicle meets prescribed safety and roadworthiness requirements. The report did not provide details of the tanker’s ownership, its permit status or the last inspection conducted by the transport authorities.
The crash is the second fatal incident involving a heavy commercial vehicle reported in Virar within a few days. Two days earlier, a two-wheeler rider was killed after a speeding dumper hit the vehicle in Virar West. The two incidents have brought renewed attention to the risks faced by two-wheeler users sharing local roads with tankers and dumpers.
Police have not announced any further enforcement action against the tanker owner or the agency using the vehicle. The investigation will determine the circumstances of the collision and the legal responsibility of the arrested driver.
