Eight devotees,including four children,lost their lives when a mini truck veered off Satara-Pandharpur road and plunged into a roadside well in Solapur’s Malshiras tehsil Sunday evening. Happened around 5 p.m. Group was returning to Ranjani village after visiting Siddhanath temple in Mhaswad,Satara district.
Victims,all from same extended family,were part of a larger group participating in rituals for Purushottam maas, a holy month for Hindu god,Lord Vishnu. Preliminary investigations say driver lost control near Tandulwadi village,leading to plunge into well—just meters from road,with no safety railings.
Rescue efforts began almost immediately. Motorists traveling behind mini truck saw it happen. Some stopped,jumped into the well to save those trapped. “Our vehicle was behind. As soon as we saw it plunge,we stopped and jumped into water. We managed to pull out two children first,” said one of rescuers. Swift actions saved eight before emergency responders arrived.
Despite efforts,eight others drowned or died from injuries. Atul Kulkarni,Solapur rural police superintendent,confirmed fatalities. Injured were taken to local medical facilities. Two treated at Tandulwadi clinic,others to private hospital in Pandharpur.
Deceased identified as: Indubai Dasharath Bavache,60; Pooja Amol Satore,23; Pooja Balaji Bavache,27; Ashwini Sandeep Bavache,27; Sanskar Sandeep Bavache,14; Sanskriti Sandeep Bavache,14; Aarav Amol Satore,8; Samarth Balaji Bavache,6 months. Survivors include Sagar Savkar Chaughule,25; Sandeep Dasharath Bavache,36; Balaji Dashrath Bavache,32; Jiya Balaji Bavache,4; Aarav Balaji Bavache,2.5; Shashikala Popat Jadhav,50; Siddheshwar Jadhav,40; Apurva Sature,11,all Pandharpur residents.
Incident raised serious safety concerns on under-construction Satara-Pandharpur road. Villagers reported similar incident with tempo two weeks ago,no casualties then . Solapur collector S. Karthikeyan visited site,announced comprehensive inquiry. “Accident is extremely unfortunate. We will investigate all aspects,” he said.
Balaso Maruti Kadam,well owner,claimed it was originally further from road but moved closer due to road-widening. Said he had warned contractor about danger,offered to cover well if compensated. No safety measures were taken.
Community mourns,demands accountability. Villagers want culpable homicide case against road contractor for neglecting safety. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis expressed condolences,announced ₹5 lakh ex-gratia for families of deceased. Prime Minister Narendra Modi also expressed sorrow,pledging ₹2 lakh from PMNRF for each victim's family,₹50,000 for injured. But will it be enough…?
