Bhubaneswar, Oct. 10: Additional chief secretary Taradatt had a narrow escape when a speeding car hit his vehicle at Capital Hospital Square this afternoon.

The speeding Maruti Ertiga that hit Taradatt’s car also collided with another car, an autorickshaw and two motorcycles.

An eyewitness said the vehicle was coming from Forest Park side and was taking a turn towards the airport. However, the driver of the Maruti Ertiga lost control and collided with the revenue department vehicle.

“The Maruti Ertiga first hit the Indigo car of the revenue department. After that, it colluded with another car, an autorickshaw and a motorcycle on the wrong side of the road,” said Prahlad Behera, an eyewitness.

Taradatt, who resides at Forest Park, was in the rear seat of the car on its way to the secretariat when the mishap took place.

He was taken to Capital Hospital and released after preliminary treatment.

Police said the Ertiga was fleeing after hitting a motorcycle at Sishu Bhavan Square. The driver lost control at Capital Hospital Square and rammed into several vehicles.

The police arrested the vehicle’s driver, identified as Pradeep Khadanga, 34. He was arrested under sections 279 (rash driving or riding on a public way) and 337 (causing hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others) of the Indian Penal Code.

The cops suspected that Khadanga had been under the influence of alcohol when the mishap took place. “We have sent him for a medical test,” said a police official. Speeding vehicles on roads leading to the state secretariat and the airport remains a major concern for commuters and pedestrians.

The road connecting New Airport Square with AG Square is mostly used by VVIPs, including chief minister Naveen Patnaik. A large number of bureaucrats also use this road. According to the Odisha Urban Police Act, the maximum speed limit for vehicles inside the city is 50km per hour. However, most of the vehicles often violate the norm in the absence of strong enforcement measures.

“A lot of youngsters are driving their vehicles at a high speed inside the city. They not only pose a threat to themselves, but also create problems for other commuters. The police should take stringent action against such errant vehicle drivers,” said local resident Murali Mohan.

The police, however, said they had been stringently enforcing the traffic rules in the city.

“Besides deployment of adequate police personnel at traffic junctions, we have been conducting regular drives at major intersections and penalising the traffic norm violators,” said assistant commissioner of police (traffic) Jatindra Kumar Panda.