Chakmaghat Tragedy: Trapped Truck Driver Dies on Live Camera as Rescue Teams Fail with Faulty Equipment, Administrative Apathy Exposed
By Our Correspondent
Agartala, August 5, 2025
In a deeply tragic and anger-inducing incident on National Highway 8 in the Chakmaghat area under Teliamura subdivision, a cement-laden truck met with a devastating head-on collision around 2:30 AM last night. The driver of the truck, Mihir Lal Debnath, son of Makhanlal Debnath from Kanchanpur, remained trapped in his seat with his body crushed under the dashboard, alive, conscious, and begging to be rescued.
Despite the immediate need for advanced rescue tools, local rescue teams from the Fire Service, Disaster Management Department, and Police failed to bring proper equipment to the site. Shockingly, no working iron cutter or hydraulic machine was available for over four hours.
Around morning, after four hours had passed, two iron cutters were finally brought in, but both were non-functional or could not be properly operated. As rescue personnel struggled helplessly, hundreds of people gathered, many filming the tragic scene. Live videos on social media captured the final moments of the driver, who was seen pleading for his life, before slowly succumbing to his injuries inside the truck, in front of the public and the authorities.
Eyewitnesses confirmed that no one could free him from the mangled cabin, and despite the presence of three Disaster Management staff and Fire personnel, their tools failed miserably. The rescue effort was further delayed as the Disaster Control Officer (DCM) reportedly reached the site seven hours after the accident.
This horrifying incident has sparked widespread public outrage, as it starkly exposed the utter lack of preparedness in Tripura’s disaster response system. Citizens have slammed the administrative failure, questioning how, despite crores being spent on disaster preparedness, not even a single working iron-cutting machine could be arranged in time.
The people of Chakmaghat and Teliamura, including local journalists and eyewitnesses, are united in their criticism, stating that this was not just an accident, but a murder by negligence.
A local journalist emotionally remarked, “This was a live death. A man cried out for help for hours, hundreds watched, officers stood by, and the administration let him die. His last breath was broadcast live and we failed him.”
The accident, which took place at 2:30 AM, ended with the lifeless body of Mihir Lal Debnath being removed at around 9:40 AM and taken to Teliamura Sub-Divisional Hospital. The 12th Battalion TSR personnel reportedly tried to assist within their limited capacity and have received appreciation from the local population.
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