A day after battling for his life in the hospital, Hyderabad techie Nithin Agarwal, who was hit by a drunk driver, passed away on January 1, Saturday. Nithin was cycling when the incident took place on Friday, December 31, around 5.45 am, near the Botanical Garden in Gachibowli, Hyderabad. The accident took place opposite the Pala Pitta cycling park. The busy road, however does not have a designed cycle lane. The deceased had suffered critical injuries after being hit from behind by the car, which was driven by a cabin crew staffer identified as Shashank.
On the day of the incident, Nithin was cycling along with his friend Sanjeet Srivastava, when the accused ran over them. In the accident, Nithin suffered critical injuries to his head and collapsed on the ground. Sanjeet suffered minor injuries.
According to the Gachibowli police, Shashank’s Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) was 186, while the permissible limit is less than 30 mg per 100 ml of blood. He was booked under section 337 (negligent driving) of the Indian Penal Code, and section 185 (drunk driving) of the Motor Vehicle Act, 1988.
According to the police, Shashank was partying with his friends on Thursday night and decided to go on a morning ride with them in an inebriated condition. Shashank reportedly told the police that he was trying to overtake another vehicle, lost control in the process and hit the cyclists who were riding on the extreme left side of the road.
Registering their protest and raising concerns about the safety of cyclists in the city, the Hyderabad cycling community has decided to gather at the KBR Park on January 9, to remind motorists that they, too, share the road. “We will not leave it like this. This is not just another episode. This is not just another "RIP" msg. I pledge to ride Bicycle more on our Hyderabad city roads,” (sic) tweeted Santhana Selvan, a cyclist in Hyderabad. Further, he appealed to all the pedestrians and cyclists who feel unsafe on roads because of speeding vehicles to gather and protest against it.
Time to voice out #WeTooShareTheRoad for the #SafetyOfPedestrians #SafetyOfCyclists in our #Hyderabad city.
— Bicycle Mayor of Hyderabad (@sselvan) December 30, 2021
9th January, 6AM
KBR Park entrance
Please do join.
Let us show some strength. pic.twitter.com/sfnOera6bc
It is with great saddeness, to share that Nithin Agarwal has passed away. His killer is a young Air line cabin crew employee, who had drinks with his friends and decided to take a morning ride on 31st Dec.
— @CoreenaSuares (@CoreenaSuares2) January 1, 2022
Nithin leaves behind a bereaved family and shattered Cyclists community. https://t.co/yh3qnoyN1m
Meanwhile, the Cyberabad police booked 873 persons on New Year’s eve for drunk driving. According to the data shared by police, 117 cases were registered in Madhapur police station, 108 in Miyapur, 160 in Kukatpally, 58 in Balanagar, 63 in Jeedimetla, 73 in Alwal, 57 in Rajendra Nagar, 31 in Shamshabad, 151 in Gachibowli, and 55 in Shadnagar.