Mangled remains of the truck near Khandagiri Square in Bhubaneswar. Telegraph picture

Bhubaneswar, July 5: Khandagiri Square has apparently turned into a death trap.

The intersection located on the National Highway No. 5 in the city, where several fatal accidents have taken place in the recent past, witnessed another mishap late last night that claimed three lives.

Nine persons have been killed in three separate accidents here in the past eight months.

Yesterday’s accident occurred when a liquor-laden truck coming from the Khurda side with seven eunuchs and two employees of the vehicle hit a stationary truck loaded with stones in front of Umamani Petrol Pump between Khandagiri and Baramunda around 1.30am. The deceased persons have been identified as Barsha, 28, Munisha, 28, and Pancha, 35.

The injured have been shifted to SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack. They all hail from the eunuchs’ slum near Vani Vihar.

This morning, a group of eunuchs demonstrated at Capital Hospital, alleging delay in post-mortem of the bodies — which created tension on the hospital premises. However, the police convinced them to wait till the post-mortem was over. Khandagiri police said the deceased were thrown out of the truck due to the impact of the accident.

“We have seized the trucks. The driver and helper of both the vehicles are on the run. We have launched a manhunt to arrest them,” said inspector in charge of Khandagiri police station Aseem Panda.

Commerce and transport minister Ramesh Chandra Majhi has sought a report from the regional transport officer (RTO), Bhubaneswar, on the frequent accidents at Khandagiri Square. “My department will hold a meeting with the police to find out the reason behind frequent accidents at this spot and how such accidents could be prevented. We will also identify other such spots in the city and take steps to stop the mishaps,” said Majhi.

On December 1 last year, an accident killed three and injured several people when a sand-laden tipper hit vehicles waiting at Khandagiri Square.

In another accident, on March 31, three people, including two engineering students, were killed when a truck hit a car.

This is the third major mishap in the past eight months at this square.