Three people died in Bareilly after their car rolled over an under-construction bridge, and PWD and Google Maps officials were booked.

 

Police have charged four Public Works Department (PWD) engineers and an unidentified Google Maps official in relation to the deaths of three men whose car slid over a bridge that was still under construction as they were using the navigation software to follow directions. According to authorities, the vehicle plunged into the Ramganga River on Sunday from a bridge that was only half built near the Dataganj authorities Station.

The three individuals who lost their lives have been identified as Nitin, Ajit and Amit. While Nitin and Ajit, both brothers, were residents of the Farrukhabad district, Amit belonged to the Mainpuri district. The three men were on their way from Noida to Faridpur in Bareilly to attend a wedding.

The incident took place on the Bareilly-Budaun border, news agency PTI reported. According to police, the driver was led by Google Maps into taking the unsafe route.

An FIR was filed against four engineers of the PWD, along with some unknown people," Dataganj Police Station SHO Gaurav Bishnoi was quoted as saying.

The regional officer of Google Maps has also been brought under the scope of investigation but his name is yet to be included in the FIR.

Meanwhile, Budaun District Magistrate Nidhi Srivastava stated that an FIR was filed under section 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita has been registered against two Assistant Engineers and two Junior Engineers of PWD and unknown persons. In addition to this, corrective measures at the site have been undertaken.

She further added that instructions have been issued to the PWD and Setu Nigam to inspect all roads, bridges, flyovers, and underpasses to prevent a repeat of such incidents.

A Google spokesperson in a statement said, “Our deepest sympathies go out to the families. We’re working closely with the authorities and providing our support to investigate the issue."