Bhubaneswar, Jan. 7: Tension gripped Sai Temple Square on the city outskirts after a youth was killed following a road mishap this morning.

A minor boy suffered injuries in the accident following which a mob blocked the road for a couple of hours and set the mini truck, which was involved in the mishap, on fire.

The deceased, identified as Karunakar Guru, 22, and the injured, Badal Guru, 12, both residents of Gandilo village in the Balianta police limits, were coming to the city on a motorcycle and had a head-on collision with the mini truck.

An eyewitness said the impact of the collision was so severe that the motorcycle was dragged to a distance of around 50 metres. While Karunakar died on the spot, Badal was thrown away off the vehicle. 'The deceased's head was smashed under the truck's wheel. As a result, he died on the spot,' he said.

Badal was rushed to Capital Hospital and later referred to SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack. As soon as the accident took place, local people gathered at the spot and put the mini truck on fire. However, the truck driver managed to flee the spot.

Later, Saheed Nagar police rushed to the spot and deployed a fire tender to douse the flames. 'We have seized the vehicle and are trying to nab the driver of the mini truck,' said inspector in-charge of Saheed Nagar police station Deepak Kumar Mishra.

The agitators also blocked the road and demanded compensation for the victim. They also demanded deployment of adequate traffic personnel to avoid frequent road mishaps.

'With the new bypass road leading to Puri, vehicular movement has increased. While a number of other traffic squares in the city have traffic personnel, we do not have that facility at Sai Temple Square,' said resident Niroj Samant.