Mathabhanga (Cooch Behar), Nov 11: Three friends were killed in the early hours of Wednesday, November 11, after the motorcycle they were riding collided head-on with a chicken-laden pickup van on the Mathabhanga-Maynaguri state highway in West Bengal's Cooch Behar district.

Source: Nation Press

The deceased have been identified as Shubhajit Sarkar, Sanjay Rabidas and Niladri Shekhar Roy, all aged between 25 and 26 years. The three had set out on a single motorcycle on Tuesday night to visit Kali Puja pandals and were returning home as the festival of Bhai Phonta was beginning.

The collision occurred near a petrol pump under Shikarpur Gram Panchayat in Mathabhanga-I block. The impact was so severe that all three riders were reportedly flung several metres from the vehicle. The pickup van driver sustained injuries and is undergoing treatment at a hospital.

Source: Urban Acres

3Friends killed in the crash
25-26Age range of the deceased
1Van driver injured and in treatment

Police investigation under way

Officers from the Cooch Behar district police reached the accident site, recovered the damaged motorcycle and the pickup van, and took both vehicles to the local police station for examination. A senior officer of the district police said the bodies have been sent for autopsy, the families of the deceased have been contacted, and the investigation is under way.

Investigators are working to establish the exact circumstances of the collision, including whether overspeeding was a contributing factor. No conclusion on the cause has been announced, and the families were yet to receive any formal state response at the time of reporting.