The driver of the truck was detained, police said. (Representational)
Three people were killed and five others injured after their auto-rickshaw hit a truck parked on the roadside in Odisha's Sambalpur district on Sunday, police said.
The accident happened near the Padhanpali toll plaza on the Sambalpur-Rourkela Biju Expressway in the Sason police station area, they said.
The dead were identified as Punam Bag, 13, her sister Nemsika Bag, 8, and their relative Benudhar Bag, 19. They were residents of Bhamarmal village in Kesinga police station area of Kalahandi district.
Police said eight people on the auto-rickshaw were going towards Khetrajpur railway station in Sambalpur from Nua Khurigaon in the Sason police station area.
After the accident, the injured persons were rushed to the Veer Surendra Sai Institute of Medical Sciences and Research (VIMSAR) in Burla. However, three persons succumbed to their injuries at the hospital, police said.
The injured persons, including the driver of the auto-rickshaw, were undergoing treatment at VIMSAR.
The truck and the auto-rickshaw were seized, and the driver of the truck was detained, police said.
Further investigation into the incident was underway, they said.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)