Three persons were killed and four others were injured when an ambulance, speeding from Jharkhand to Calcutta, entered the wrong lane and collided head-on with a truck coming from the opposite direction on NH12 near Jagulia intersection of Haringhata in Nadia in the small hours of Sunday.

Two women and one man, Noharai Bibi, Mantahara Bibi and Antarul Sheikh, died in the crash.

The four injured victims have been admitted to the JNM Hospital & College of Medicine in Kalyani.

Police sources said that the ambulance driver reportedly took a wrong diversion and then strayed into the wrong lane bound for north Bengal, instead of staying on the Calcutta-bound stretch.

The vehicle had been transporting a patient from Pakur, Jharkhand, to the SSKM Hospital in Calcutta, the police said.

Local resident Subhash Saha, who was among those who rushed to rescue the victims, said: “We heard a loud crash and rushed to the roadside, only to find the ambulance had rammed into the truck in the wrong lane. Police arrived soon after, and we helped arrange for the victims to be taken to JNM Hospital in Kalyani.”

A Haringhata police officer held the ambulance driver responsible for the accident.

“Since the widened NH12 was opened with dedicated lanes on both sides, the number of accidents has significantly decreased," he said.

"However, such tragic loss of lives due to reckless driving is alarming. It appears that despite having a clear lane, the driver veered into the wrong lane at a diversion, seemingly in an attempt to rush the patient to the hospital. This reckless move put the vehicle directly in the path of oncoming traffic, leading to a fatal collision,” the officer said.