Top junior paddler D Vishwa killed in road accident

Guwahati: One of the country's top young table tennis players, 18-year-old D Vishwa of Tamil Nadu, lost his life in a tragic road accident when going from Guwahati to Shillong to participate 83rd Senior National Table Tennis Championship in Shillong on Sunday.

Vishwa and the driver of the team's vehicle were both killed in the accident. Three other players from the Tamizhaga Table Tennis Association (TTTA) men's team were also injured in the accident. They were rushed to a hospital in Shillong, where they are recovering.

Speaking to The Bridge, Giri Prasad M, IP Superintendent of Police of Ri Bhoi District, Meghalaya said, "Today at around 1:50pm, a 12-wheeler truck loaded with clinker lost control at Shangbangla and jumped to the other lane and dashed against one tourist vehicle. The truck went off road and fell down into the jungle at a distance of about 50 metres from the highway. In this accident, D Vishwa and Dipal Das, airport tourist taxi driver, succumbed to their injuries."

He added, "The driver of the truck and the other three TTTA paddlers – R Santosh Kumar, D Kishore Kumar and S Abhinash Prasannaji - were shifted to Civil Hospital Nongpoh for medical attention. A police case has been registered at Nongpoh."

Chiranjib Choudhury, General Secretary of Meghalaya Table Tennis Association, the association hosting the national championships, expressed deep sorrow over the accident and informed a cultural event scheduled on the sidelines of the tournament has been cancelled in the wake of the tragedy.

"We are grieving the sudden death of D Vishwa, a Tamil Nadu paddler who was on his way to Shillong to take part in the 83rd Senior National Table Tennis Championship. We have cancelled the cultural programme scheduled for the inauguration. Two members of the MTTA are stationed in Nongpoh to ensure the completion of all formalities and will receive the family members at Guwahati Airport tomorrow. The district administration of Ri-Bhoi is also facilitating the process of returning the body to Chennai," he said.

Meghalaya Table Tennis Association released a statement stating, "On behalf of the entire MTTA family, the association's Vice-President Bruce P Marak and General Secretary Chiranjib Choudhury, expressed condolences on the demise of Vishwa, an extremely gifted and promising table tennis player. The teenager had won several juniors, sub-junior, and cadet titles in the country and abroad over a short but wonderful career and his demise is a huge blow to the sport in India. May his soul rest in peace."