A tragedy on the Hyderabad-Bijapur Highway that took place on Monday morning has claimed 19 lives, shattering several families.
Among them is Yellaiah Goud, a driver who has lost three daughters, all college students in Hyderabad -- Tanusha, Sai Priya and Nandini.
The family had recently celebrated the marriage of their eldest daughter, Anusha. Over the weekend, the girls, who were studying in Hyderabad, had come to attend another wedding in Tandur.
"I had asked them not to come. Their mother asked them to come. Last night, they wanted to return. We asked them not to go on a Sunday and leave early on Monday morning. When I was dropping them at the bus stop, someone said, 'The bus is not in good condition. Why are you sending them?' But I sent them. I have lost not one but three daughters. What will I do now?" he wailed.
The loss of the Goud family and the collective sorrow that swept through Tandur in Telangana's Ranga Reddy district highlighted the devastating human cost of this highway collision.
The head-on crash with a gravel-laden truck, so violent it had crushed and buried its victims, stands as a brutal reminder of just how quickly hope can be extinguished.
Among other heart-wrenching stories is that of the family of Saliha Begum, 33. Saliha was traveling to Hyderabad to visit her paternal grandparents with her three-month-old boy-- a simple journey that turned catastrophic.
When rescue workers painstakingly cleared the debris and gravel, they found Saliha still clutching her child.
The image of the mother and infant, wrapped in a final, protective embrace, speaks of a bond severed brutally.
Another victim, N Hanumanthu, whose life revolved around his work and family, had missed an earlier train to Hyderabad and chose the bus. He left behind a 10-year-old son, Vivek, who wept inconsolably at the accident site.
The Chevella tragedy is a stark reminder that road fatalities are not statistics. They are parents, children, students, and family members who suddenly leave a void that will never be filled.
